Strings (1 of 2)

Chapter 15 - Interruption

I lift my head up. "Upstairs, first door on the left."

He nods and starts climbing the stairs, kissing me eagerly. I tangle my hands in his hair and tug lightly, making him groan again.

Once we get to my bedroom, he places me on my feet and I feel a chill now that I am not against from his warm body. He instantly tugs his shirt off his head, revealing his perfect tattooed abs, and my stomach tightens. He looks me over hungrily and steps closer, wrapping his arms around me again and pulling me against him. 

"I want you" he growls and slides his hands under my tank top, gripping my waist roughly. His lips meet mine again, this time with urgency. I moan against his lips and grip the back of his neck tightly, desperate to have him closer even though there is no space left between us.

I move backwards, pulling us towards my bed and my foot hits the corner of the carpet and I stumble and fall back on to the bed, bringing Nathan down on top of me. We both laugh at my clumsiness and he tucks a piece of my hair behind my ear gently while staring into my eyes intently. My heart beats so fast in my chest, I bet he can feel it too against me.

My phone suddenly starts blaring from my pocket and Nathan and I both blink, pulled back to reality. He lifts off of me to let me check my phone, much to my discontent. I frown and sit up a little and reach into my pocket to see who disturbed us.

A picture of a shirtless man flashes on the screen and my eyes widen instantly. I try to throw the phone across the bed but Nathan snatches it out of my hand and stares at it. I immediately regret ever making that his contact photo...

Why is he calling me so late? He never calls anymore... Something must be wrong.

"Who the fuck is this? You have a boyfriend?!" he asks, clearly confused and very furious.

I shake my head quickly. "No! Of course not. I wouldn't do that!"

I reach for my phone but he pulls it back away from me. "Then who is this?"

"An old friend. I don't know why he is calling. He never calls." I insist.

"An old shirtless friend?" he says sarcastically, narrowing his eyes at me. I don't reply.

The ringtone keeps blaring, filling the awful silence between us.

Part of me feels guilty that he saw Dean call me. To be fair, I don't think I would enjoy seeing a shirtless picture of a girl on his phone. But the other part of me is starting to feel defensive to his reaction. I've known this guy a week, he shouldn't be so angry...

Nathan stares at me for a few more seconds, deciding whether to trust my explanation. He hits the decline button and places the phone on my nightstand face down and stares at the floor blankly with no expression.

The mood between us has completely changed. My large room now feels tiny and cramped in the awkward silence between us. I don't want to feel this way after such a nice night together, but I don't think we are going to get back to where we were before after this.

I frown and reach for his hand. Thankfully, he doesn't snatch it away and instead lets me hold it.

"Can we forget about that and just go to bed please? The marshmallows are making me sleepy." I try to lighten the mood and squeeze his hand lightly.

He finally looks at me and sighs, getting up from the bed. Is he leaving? Is Dean calling really that big of a deal for him? We said no strings from the start... and he is going to leave over this?

I watch him silently as he steps towards his shirt and picks it up off the ground. He must be leaving. Fine, then. I won't beg him to stay.

He turns back to me and walks over, placing his shirt beside me on the bed. I look between the shirt and him, confused. He unbuttons his jeans and pulls them down, leaving his black boxers on. I smile and take my shorts and tank top off, and pull his t-shirt over my head. It hangs over me loosely, covering me to my mid-thigh, and smells like a pleasant mix of the bonfire and ocean.

I climb into bed and scoot over for him to lay down beside me and he follows, switching the light off first. I turn on my side to lay facing him and I feel the bed shift from him getting under the covers.

"Are we okay?" I ask nervously, hoping it will force him to speak. I hate when he is silent, I can't tell what he is thinking. Especially in the dark when I can't see his face.

I feel his hand glide over my hips and up my side slowly, making my skin tingle. He presses his palm against my cheek and I lean into it slightly.

"Sorry I overreacted." I hear him say quietly. I still can only make out the silhouette of his face, my eyes not fully adjusted to the dark yet. A weight lifts off my chest as soon as I hear his words.

I smile and inch closer to him, resting my head on his bare chest. His large arms wrap around my waist, bringing me even closer. My breathing slows as I drift nearer to sleep listening to his heart beat against my ear.

Author's Note:

Thank you so much for reading! Please vote and comment if you liked the chapter and add the book to your library for updates when I post!

I was trying something new with the middle of this chapter... what are your thoughts on the more intimate scenes between Emily and Nathan? Do you want me to write their full sex scenes or leave it offscreen (or whatever the book equivalent is to that lol)? I can if my readers want me to but I think the story can also develop fine without it. Please let me know your thoughts in the comments or direct message me!!

Also, if you have Twitter or Instagram, I created writer accounts this week! If you want to follow me, they are both named @KeyaraC_Writer and have more content and updates on the story and when I will/have posted!

Again, thanks so much for reading! Love you all!