Cameron
She leaves me with my dick throbbing, my palms sweating, and my heart racing a mile a minute.
I can't even focus as the bartender I now know to be Tre tells her to wait an hour before he gets off from his shift and that he'll gladly take her home for the night. She doesn't even know this guy.
I'm clenching my glass tightly as she joins Maya and Katie out on the dance floor, and my eyes remain glued to her body. I shouldn't have drank tonight knowing that I'd be around her. I should have known better.
She's irresistible to me though. I'm drawn to her, always. From those heavenly tits to her perfect ass, to those legs that seem to run for days, I close my eyes and let out a sigh.
I want her so badly right now. I want to pull her into that bathroom and go for round two like we did all those years ago. I want to pull on that damn ponytail and fuck the shit out of her, yet I also want to just make love to her like we used to. I want to keep it slow and stare at that beautiful face as she comes. I still remember how she looked. Like a fucking angel beneath me.
But that was before she had agreed to randomly fuck this guy. Was she doing that to make me jealous? What I said definitely got to her. I saw her breathing become more erratic. I saw her bite that lip. I saw her.
As I continue to watch her dance, I see Katie try to wave me over.
Katie.
Oh, what a shitty boyfriend I am. I just tried to sleep with my ex, and she has no clue. Is this really who I want to become? Maddie and I have no shot in hell at working, so why the hell did I even try it?
I slam my drink down on the counter and turn to the man I already despise before I say, "You hurt her, your ass is mine. You hear me?"
Tre laughs before he gets a stupid fucking grin on his face. "Who? The beautiful single girl, or your girlfriend?"
Maddie must have told him, and if it weren't for Katie staring at me right now I would have decked him right in the mouth for that slick-ass comment.
"You know which one I'm fucking talking about," I seethe, and then I push my glass toward him and head over to the girls. Ethan is here now, gripping Maya's hips as she grinds on him in circles.
There's no way I can hide my anger right now, especially when I'm two feet away from the girl who made me this angry. Katie grabs both sides of my face, leaning up to give me a kiss. "Hey, what's wrong?" She asks.
I'm too angry to even speak. I'm pissed because I can't have her no matter how much I may want to. I really like Katie, but I know if Maddie said she wanted to be with me right here, right now, I don't think I'd be able to refuse her, and I think I always knew that. Thus the reason I always make sure she won't be here every year for Christmas break before I fly out.
But now that it's happening, right in front of my face, I'm so angry that I don't even know what to do. I can't fix this situation unless I tell Maddie how I really feel, and trying to hook up with her at a club isn't exactly getting my point across.
Then again, Maddie is literally about to go hook up with a random guy. That doesn't exactly prove to me that she wants this too.
"I want to go home," I shout into Katie's ear over the music. I avoid looking at Maddie at all costs. The last thing I need to see is her leaving with that douchebag.
He's going to take her home tonight and feel that soft skin of hers. He's going to be able to kiss down her back. Will he figure out that spot she likes? Right between her neck and shoulder?
Katie pouts. "But we haven't even been here that long. I'm having fun with everyone!"
Maya places her hand on my arm, and I can tell from the look she's giving me that she already knows something happened between us. Katie is just too drunk to notice.
"I'll bring her home," she says. "I'm not drinking tonight."
"Thanks," I tell her and fish the car keys out of my pocket, but Ethan reaches his hand out to stop me.
"Are you insane?" He asks. "Call an Uber, bro. You're drunk. Matter of fact, I'll do it. Come on."
He pulls me by my elbow outside, and when the cool air finally hits me I let out a sigh of relief. I'm drunk enough to stumble, and Ethan pulls me up by my shoulders. "Cam, are you good?"
I'm breathing heavily, and before I know it I'm blinking away tears. I'm not okay. It's been years since Maddie and I dated, yet my heart hurts all the same. I miss her. As much as I hate to admit it, I fucking miss her, and I miss kissing her, and holding her, and talking about life with her, and—
Oh god, I am very drunk.
I clear my throat and stare down at the pavement while he pulls up the Uber app on his phone. "I just need to go home."
"It should be here in about ten minutes," he says, and then he pats me on the back. "You need to talk to her, Cameron, before it's too late."
I nod because I know that I do. Tonight proved that. I can't stay with Katie if I'm having these feelings for Maddie, and until I know for certain that there's no chance for us then I won't be able to fully commit to Katie.
As much as I don't want to have this dreaded conversation between us, I need to. And soon.
***
The next morning
Maddie
The blinding sunlight wakes me up, and as I blink my eyes open I recognize a window I've never seen before. I'm trying to recollect my memory from last night, and slowly it dawns on me. I don't recognize where I'm at because I'm with Tre. I came home with him last night.
Sitting up quickly, I realize I'm on a couch. It's very comfortable, and I use my hands to feel my body. I'm in nothing but a t-shirt and panties, and this t-shirt certainly isn't mine.
Oh fuck.
The aroma of bacon and eggs makes my stomach grumble. I get up to see where it's coming from, passing through a dining room before I finally land my eyes on Tre. He's flipping an egg in a pan over the stove with no shirt on.
"Good morning." Tre smiles a dazzling full toothed grin at me, his voice all dark and husky from probably just waking up himself. He's a fine specimen of a man. I'll give him that. "I assume you want breakfast?"
I nod eagerly and take a seat at the island on one of the barstools. His apartment is extremely nice for working as a bartender. It's a loft with red brick walls for the most part, but it's upscale and modern. Stainless steel appliances and black and red furniture. It's more than nice.
"My dad," he answers without me having to ask the question. He must see people look at his place like this all the time. "He's the CEO of an oil company out in Texas."
Wow. I'm impressed.
"And you're here because...?"
"Because my dad is a CEO of an oil company out in Texas." He laughs again, and I get the impression that his dad must be a dick. "It's easier out here. Less pressure."
"Less pressure to what?" I ask.
He slides the bacon and eggs onto a plate for me and passes it over, then he opens up the fridge to grab out a container of orange juice. "Would you like some?" He shakes it in front of me, completely ignoring my previous question.
I piece together that he must not want to talk about it, so I agree to some orange juice and let him place the glass down in front of me. "So, about last night..." I trail off to try and change the subject.
He raises an eyebrow, waiting for me to continue.
"Did we..." I clear my throat, and I see that he's beginning to laugh at me.
"Did we...fuck?" He finishes. I can feel my cheeks turn so red that they're on fire. "No, we didn't. It's not really my thing to fuck drunk women."
I glance down at my half-naked body, and he laughs again.
"You said that's how you slept. You refused a pair of sweatpants."
Well, he's right. I do only sleep in a t-shirt, or naked. At least I had half a brain to put a t-shirt on.
"I'm sorry," I find myself saying with a mouthful of eggs. They are so good. "I don't know what I was thinking. Nothing like looking desperate."
He takes another sip of orange juice and a little bit gets onto his lip. He sticks his tongue out to get it, and I feel myself fidgeting in my seat.
"Trust me, you aren't desperate," he says. "On the way here you may or may not have told me about a thousand times that I would only be your second person to ever have sex with."
"Oh my god." I'm so embarrassed I can't even think of what else to say. I just cover my face with my hands and begin to laugh. "I am so sorry. How embarrassing is that?"
He shrugs and takes a bite of bacon, those beautiful brown eyes never leaving mine. "I actually found it kind of cute."
I remember last night with Cameron, and my stomach twists up into knots. Maybe that's from me being hungover, I don't know, but it's all I can focus on. I got so drunk, but I remember that he tried to make a move on me. He was saying dirty things...
Oh god, did Katie notice?
"I'm assuming lover boy was your first?" He asks and I nod. "Seemed like a dick if you ask me."
"Was he mean to you?" I rack my brain to try and remember, but that part is foggy.
"Eh. He was just a jealous ex-boyfriend. I get it a lot working where I do."
I shake my head. "I don't think he was jealous... He just gets really protective over me sometimes. We've been friends since we were kids."
"Maddie." He places his hand on my knee and rolls his eyes. "You are very naive."
"No, you just don't know Cam. That's how he is."
He never responds, but I finish my breakfast quickly, and after he puts all of the dishes into the sink he grabs his keys off the counter. "Would you like me to call an Uber or can I drive you home?"
"Do you want to drive me home?"
He stares at me for a few seconds, eventually letting out a sigh before he steps closer and grabs my wrist. "Yes, Maddie. I want to drive you home. I'd also like to take you out sometime if you'll let me. Somewhere that isn't a nightclub, where we can get to know each other more."
Men have hit on me before, don't get me wrong, but never one that I genuinely did want to get to know more. Tre seems sweet and kind, and I appreciate the fact that he didn't take advantage of me last night when he could have.
"Tre, I think you're awesome..." I start, and he lets out a sigh.
"Ah, don't give me the speech." He waves his hand in the air as if it isn't a big deal. "It's fine. I just figured I'd ask."
"No, it's not that I'm not interested," I blurt out. "I am, I'm just not in a place where I can have a relationship right now. I have a lot going on with school, and I don't do the long-distance thing."
He nods and drops the subject completely before he says, "Understood. I'm going to grab you a pair of my sweatpants and a pair of my shoes. Unless you want to wear what you wore last night?"
A miniskirt and bodysuit don't sound comfortable right now, so I let him give me some of his clothes. They're oversized on me completely, but they're roomy and cozy. I love them.
"Thank you," I tell him, "for everything. For breakfast, the clothes... All of it."
"Anytime. If you ever want another fake one-night stand, you know who to call."