I heard the challenge in his voice, and while there was a small part of me that just wanted to get out of the gym unscathed, I always loved a good competition.
I bit my lip, trying hard to look seductive while making it look like I wasn't trying all that hard. It was hard to look a certain way when you tried to make it look innocent and unthinking.
I licked my lips and forced my eyes to remain steady with his. I felt his breath hitch and a small smile spread out across my lips, knowing that I had a decent effect on him.
"Sebastian," I whispered out as hoarsely as I could, trying to make it seem like I was desperately in need of the attention only he could give me.
It wasn't like I wasn't affected by him in that moment, it was just that all rational thought had left my body and I wanted to be the girl who played the player and beat him at his very own misguided game.
He started to lean forward slowly, cautiously as if he were testing the waters between us after his call for me to challenge him.
I licked my lips once more and that seemed to make up his mind, but I had made mine up long before.
He leaned down closer, his grip on my wrists ever loosening and I took that as my opportunity to release myself from his grip and pushed against his chest with as much force as I could muster.
For the second time that day, Sebastian Jennings found himself on his back, pushed off by a girl.
I didn't give him time to recover, though, as I crawled over to his surprised and confused form and placed my body atop of his.
I loved having this type of control over him.
I saw his adam's apple bounce in his throat, his tanned skin glistening from the tiny amount of sweat on his skin from our tickling war.
I leaned down and placed my lips to his ear to whisper in his ear, but he turned the tables on me for a change and suddenly he was straddling me, the entire weight of his body pressing down on me and I was so surprised that I found myself unrelentingly affected by his nearness and his scent, musk and mint, that there was a cloud of foggy lust inhabiting my brain.
"Don't look so confident now, do you?" he asked me, his husky voice filling my ears like a sweet symphony of sounds.
I gulped.
His emerald eyes bore into mine and I couldn't look away, not when we were so close.
Right when I thought he was going to lean down even closer and brush his lips against my own, and right when I thought I would actually let him, something stopped me from making a huge mistake and seeming like one of those awful fan girls who always threw themselves at him.
My phone rang.
My blood ran cold.
It wasn't because of my phone ringing, but because of the specific different ringtone I'd set my phone to play whenever my father called.
I cringed, and Sebastian knew it too.
He got off of me when he saw my uncomfortable look on my face and I rushed over to my bag where I'd left it, the chilling sounds of the ringtone bouncing off of the locker room walls.
I had done that so in case my dad called while my mom was nearby, I knew not to answer.
Divorce and custody battles were not fun when you were the only child stuck in the middle of them.
I answered the phone softly, although I should have been beyond angry at him.
He had promised to take me out to dinner for celebrating my good grades like we always used to do when he lived at home, just the two of us, but he bailed at the last second. Said he was working.
Come to find out, he was actually out partying the night away, dancing it up with the woman he'd left my mother for.
"Holly, hey sweetie, when did you want to reschedule our father daughter dinner? I'm free tonight? I'm sorry work held me up last time..." he trailed off, the lie rolling off of his tongue so easily that I wondered how often he'd used that trick on my mother and I.
"I don't think that's a good idea. Give Sharon my best," I said snakily, spitting the words out at him.
"What are you talking about? We always go out for-"
"Stop lying! You did it to mom and now you're doing it to me too! I thought that since I was your daughter that meant there was a certain moral code with us, but I guess not. Go back to your whore, you obviously want to be spending more time with her than you do with me," I spat at him, wanting him to feel how deeply his lies had cut through me.
"Holly, your mother never should have said anything to you about that!"
"So what if she did? At least I know that I have one parent who tells me the truth!" I yelled at him, the emotions running hard and fast inside me and I knew the waterworks would start up if I didn't end the call soon.
"Holls..."
Too late. I felt the burning and the pricking sensation on my eyes and I sniffed, wanting to sound unaffected but it was too late for that.
"Bye dad."
I hung the phone up and sat down on one of the benches in the locker room, the cool metal of the bench cutting into my exposed thighs and allowing myself to cool off a bit before I had to face Sebastian again.
I changed quickly and gathered my things, not wanting to be in his presence after how close we'd come to crossing a line and I was in too vulnerable a state to trust myself around him.
I shook my head as I left the locker room. Sebastian Jennings only wanted an ordinary girl like me for a night, use and throw away like an unwanted toy.
I refused to allow myself to be treated like that, I thought better of myself than some glorified groupie wannabe who only wanted Sebastian's name and status.
I'd rather have him as a friend than a one night throw away.
I wiped my eyes as I entered the gym once more and saw that Sebastian was standing up and drinking from a water bottle, and once he had enough to drink he then proceeded to dump some of the contents on his hair and I watched with my mouth open as water trickled through his black hair down his abs, the motions slow as if he were in a movie and he was doing it on purpose to make me swoon or something...
Even though he hadn't even spotted me, it still felt like this little show was for me...
And as much as I appreciated the view, I had to get home to my mom. I knew how she must have been feeling, and by that point my dad would have already called her to cuss her out about telling me the truth about what he'd been doing when he bailed on me...again.
It hadn't been the first time he'd done something like that, obviously. He'd probably been doing it since he started cheating on my mom.
I cleared my throat to garner Sebastian's attention, and he turned with a slow cocky smile painted on his gorgeous face.
He saw my distant expression and dropped the bad boy demeanor almost immediately. He rushed to my side and was there in an instant.
"What happened? Have you been crying?" he asked incredulously, as if he'd never imagine me crying even though he'd seen me cry before.
"No. I need to go home though, my mom needs me," I said to him, noticing that my voice cracked a bit at the end.
"Okay. I'll have Jason take you home if that's what you really want. I'd love to take you home myself but I have a conference call with my agents that I was putting off until you left."
My eyes widened in surprise. He'd blown off an important part of his job to hang out with me?
I cleared my throat again to make sure my voice sounded steady and plastered on a smile so fake that even a blind person could tell wasn't real.
"Okay. Thanks for...umm...rape tickle defense lessons I guess?" I asked, a real smile spreading across my face as I remembered his antics.
He saluted me like a soldier in the army.
"Any time ma'am. Just doing my job, keeping young beautiful women like yourself safe from the tickle predators out there."
I laughed at his adorable charade and he motioned with his hands to follow him to the door.
Once I was outside in the California sun, I felt my cheeks heat when I remembered what had happened in his gym.
"Next time, let's meet at that diner again okay? I'll bring my disguise, you just bring your good taste in Jukebox music. Deal?" he asked me and again I was surprised.
He'd asked to hang out with me yet again? Of course it could just be his way of chasing a conquest, finishing a challenge that wouldn't give in to him.
But there wasn't any real chance anyone could hook up at a diner. Maybe his reasons weren't all about sex...
"I'll think about it," I said coyly and he shook his head.
"Not good enough."
"Fine. Text me..." I trailed off, remembering my destroyed phone.
Right as he was about to say something, though, Jason and his large black SUV pulled up ready to whisk me home.
"About that..." he trailed off as Jason got out of the SUV holding a shopping bag.
"Hey Holly! Happy early birthday!" Jason shouted as he angled his way up the stairs towards us.
He held out his hands and the shopping bag that looked suspiciously like it was from a mobile phone carrier company.
I squinted my eyes in mock anger at Sebastian.
"You got me a phone?" I asked, opening the contents of the bag.
Sure enough, a shiny I-Phone was staring back at me through its contents, along with a brand new case for it and a watch that paired with the phone as well.
"And an Apple watch? I can't take this, its too much..." I trailed off, not wanting to make it seem like I was only hanging out with him for the things he could do for me.
"I have more money that I know what to do with. I could donate a million of those things and still have more money than anyone could ever want. Trust me, its a birthday present Holly."
I sighed, looking up into his sweet green eyes.
I gave him a soft smile as I put my old phone into the bag.
I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck quickly, not missing the way his body stood stock still as he was surprised I'd do such a thing.
Hell, I even surprised myself.
I pulled back just as his arms wrapped around my body and bounded down the steps to the awaiting car, leaving the sadness from my phone call with my father behind me and allowed the new feeling of happiness to surround me for what felt like the first time in forever.