Believing Lies (12 page)

“Enjoy the show?” he asked Conner, who was cracking up.

“Dude, you had that coming. Do you even remember her name?” Conner asked between laughs.

“Sure I do. Lori.”

Conner snorted. “Nope. It’s Tori.”

Adam shrugged his shoulders. “Lori. Tori. Close enough.”

Sophie made a gagging noise. “You’re a real pig sometimes. You know that, right?”

“It’s part of my charm.” He took a drink from his bottled water. “You girls have a good time on the dance floor?”

“Yes,” I replied curtly. “We were just taking a break, but we’re going back out now.” I grabbed Sophie’s arm, and she waved goodbye to Conner as I pulled her away. I needed to get away from Adam before he noticed that I was unjustifiably and irrationally jealous.

I let Sophie know that we needed to make a beeline to the bar for some shots first. Sophie used her looks and flirtatious ways to get us waited on quickly. We both slammed the Jaeger shots she ordered and pushed our way back to the dance floor. Hopefully, the Jaeger and some dancing would make me forget about my conflicting feelings regarding Adam.

We were about three songs in when I felt as if I was being watched. I glanced over Sophie’s shoulder to see Adam and Conner sitting at a table by the dance floor looking at us.

“Conner is over there,” I yelled to Sophie over the music. She turned her head to where I was pointing. She crooked her finger, motioning for Conner to come to her. He seemed happy to oblige and made his way through the sea of dancing bodies.

I leaned in, so she could hear me over the music. “I’m getting tired, so I’m going to go sit by Adam. Dance with Conner for a while.” I wasn’t really tired. I simply didn’t want to be a third wheel.

I was near the edge of the dance floor and almost back to the table that Conner had just left when I saw that it was empty. I was mid thought, wondering if I should sit by myself, when I felt hands on my hips. I tried to turn around to tell whoever it was to take a hike, but the hands tightened and kept me in place. I glanced down and recognized the leather wrist cuff. All thoughts drifted away. By instinct alone, I molded myself against Adam’s body.

“You look so damn sexy out here. Do you realize what you’re doing to me?” Pulled tight against his body, I could feel exactly what I was doing to him. He started to sway my hips for me until we were moving in sync with each other to the beat of the heavy bass.

I knew this was a bad idea, but I didn’t care. I just wanted to feel alive again, and at that moment, my whole body was alive and humming with electricity. His hand left my hip and goose bumps prickled along my skin as his fingertips glided up my arm. He gently moved my hair to the side, and I felt his lips scattering kisses along the arch of my neck.

“Adam.” I didn’t know if I said his name to get him to stop or to urge him on, but his mouth and hands were no longer on me. I stopped dancing, my body mourning the loss of his touch.
He spun me, and I was suddenly looking up into his deep brown eyes, which were filled with as much desire as I was sure mine were. Without hesitation, his lips crashed down onto mine. At first, I was paralyzed by the action, my body unable to process the events as fast as they were happening. But a breath escaped my lips, parting them slightly, and he deepened the kiss. My entire body spiked with heat. Giving into the moment, I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back. Recognizing my complete surrender, he pulled me closer to him.

To my surprise, his kiss soon softened. “I want you so bad right now,” he spoke into my lips. “Please tell me you want this just as much. My house is close.”

His words were like ice-cold water dumped on me. “I . . . I can’t.”
I’m so stupid
. Of course he was just after sex.

Slipping out of his arms, I left him standing on the dance floor as I walked quickly in the direction of the bathroom, where I hoped to hide for a few minutes and collect my thoughts. I was steps away from the door when my hand was grabbed, and I was pulled backwards. I collided against Adam’s hard chest with a thud.

“Sophie’s looking for you. She wants to go home,” he said matter-of-factly, his face expressionless.

I stared at his bicep and the black lines peeking out from under his sleeve while I tried to ignore the warmth of my hand in his. I was so embarrassed by what just happened on the dance floor that I refused to look him in the eye.

“Okay, I’m ready to go too.” He led me to the front door and out onto the sidewalk. The fresh, summer air enveloped my body, and it felt so nice to be free of the crowded bar. I looked around for Sophie and Conner, but I couldn’t find them. “Isn’t Sophie out here yet?” I questioned.

“No, and I don’t expect she will be anytime soon.”

“What are you talking about?” I furrowed my brow in confusion and irritation. “You said she was ready to leave.”

“I wanted to talk to you, and I knew it would be a way to get you to come with me.”

“Screw you, Adam. I don’t appreciate being lied to or tricked. I’m going back in.”

“Just hear me out,” he said, almost sounding like a plea.

My shoulders slumped in defeat, and I let out a sigh. “Fine.”

We walked a few feet from the entrance before stopping and facing each other. I made sure to keep enough room between us to ensure there wouldn’t be a repeat of the dance floor make out session.
I can’t believe I did that
.

He jumped right into what he wanted to tell me. “Look, I’m sorry for kissing you. I was out of line. Conner and Sophie really seem to be into each other, so the last thing I want to do is have you feeling uncomfortable around me. I’ll back off.” He hesitated. “Unless you’d rather I didn’t?”

“No, let’s keep this platonic,” I quickly replied. “I have fun around you and would like us to be friends. I’m not ready for another relationship, and we both know that even if I was, you’re not the relationship kind of guy.”

He nodded once. “True . . . Friends it is.”

“Friends it is,” I repeated with a smile.

He suddenly looked at me as if I had sprouted a second head.

“What? Is there something in my teeth?” On reflex, my tongue rubbed the front of my teeth.

He chuckled. “No, your teeth are fine.”

“What’s with the goofy look then?”

“I just realized I’ve been Friend Zoned. That’s never happened to me before . . . It’s kind of weird.”

“There’s a first time for everything,” I tried to joke.

He looked up at the night sky for several seconds before returning his attention to me. “I don’t think I can do strictly friends,” he stated bluntly. I started to protest, but he put a finger on my lips. Not going to lie, I wanted to suck it. I might have if he hadn’t removed it so fast. “I think I have a solution.”

“Go on,” I urged.

“You’re hot.”

“This seems to be heading in the opposite direction fast.”

He chuckled. “Hear me out. I won’t kiss you again, but I don’t think I’ll be able to stop hitting on you. It’s not in my nature. You’ll just have to deal with it and know that I’ll never push past flirting. What do you think?”

“Can I flirt back?”
Why did I ask that?

He pondered my question. “Sure, but be careful if you do. I can only handle so much temptation.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Deal.”

He slung his arm over my shoulder and started to steer me back to the bar. “Come on,
buddy
. Let’s go back inside.”

Chapter Eleven

I picked up my phone to see who had texted me and was shocked to see Adam’s name. I was even more shocked to see his picture next to the text. He looked hot in the picture, and, of course, he was wearing a shit-eating grin.

ADAM: RU missing me?

ME: How did your contact info get into my phone? And why am I staring at a picture of your ugly mug?

ADAM: Ask me no secrets and I’ll tell you no lies.

ME: Ha. Cute ;)

ADAM: I may or may not have messed w/ your phone yesterday.

ME: I haven’t seen u since last week.

ADAM: U were in the shower when I picked up Conner. Your phone was in the kitchen.

ME: IT WAS IN MY PURSE!!! U went thru my phone and purse! :(

ADAM: Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone about the “u know what” in your wallet.

What’s he talking about?
I quickly went to the kitchen to get my purse. I pulled out my wallet and started to sift through the contents—cash, license, school id, library card, debit card . . . A laugh burst from my mouth when I finally found what he was referring to. In between my debit card and credit card was a piece of yellow paper covered in Adam’s handwriting.

Magic Ticket

Good for one free massage
.

(Clothing optional)

-Adam

ME: Pervert.

ADAM: That’s what u like about me.

ME: Who said I like you?

ADAM: Everybody likes me.

ME: Gag.

ADAM: Do u have plans today?

Sophie was spending the day with her Dad, and I was actually really bored. But was spending time alone with Adam a good idea? It had been a week since the night at The Turning Point, but I had replayed that kiss over and over again in my mind. I knew that I’d need to remain extremely cautious if I planned to overcome the sexual attraction I had for him. However, if I was going to really give this whole being-friends-thing a shot, now was as good a time as any. At least it was daytime, and no alcohol would cloud my judgment.

ME: No plans.

ADAM: Good. Let’s hang out.

ME: When?

ADAM: Now.

The intercom buzzed, scaring the crap out of me. I walked to it and pressed the Talk button. “Hello?” I tentatively asked.

“Are you going to let me in or what?” My pulsed raced at the sound of his voice.
Holy crap! He’s already here
.

I buzzed him into the building and sprinted to my room to quickly throw on a bra under my white cotton tank top. I could only imagine the comments that would be slung my way if he could see my nipples through my shirt. I barely made it back to the door in time to hear the knock.

I opened the door to find Adam holding two Starbucks cups. He looked even sexier than normal because he was wearing a white T-shirt that had the sleeves cut off, leaving his tattoos and biceps on glorious display. He had on gray cargo shorts and flip flops. His jet black hair was extra messy and in need of a haircut. And even though he was inside, he was still wearing the aviator sunglasses that I loved so much.

“You do realize you can take off your sunglasses in the building?” I teased.

“You just can’t wait to stare into my eyes, can you?” I laughed at his cheesy line. “Well, as you can see, Princess, my hands are holding two very hot coffees. If you would like to take one of them, I’ll be happy to remove my glasses for you.”

I took a coffee from his hand and brought the cup to my nose to inhale the aroma. It smelled like a small piece of heaven. “Thank you. This is just what I needed.”

He took off his glasses and smiled. “You’re welcome.”

I opened the door further and gestured for him to come in. He followed me to the kitchen, where he sat at the island and I hopped up onto the counter. We both took a few drinks of our coffee in silence.

“That was a pretty ballsy move, waiting downstairs before I even agreed to spend time with you,” I finally said. “What if I’d told you that I was busy or that I didn’t want to see you?”

He smiled into his coffee cup before taking a drink. “Then I guess I would’ve had extra coffee to drink.”

I laughed. “I guess so. By the way, you can come over whenever you want, if you always promise to bring me coffee when you do.”

“Noted.” He gave me a lopsided grin. “Aren’t you curious as to why I’m here?”

I shrugged. “A little.”
A lot!

“Sophie took Conner to meet her dad today, and—”

“She did what?!” I exclaimed loudly, cutting him off. I wondered when someone was going to come in the front door to tell me that I was on a hidden camera TV show.

His face hardened. “What’s your problem? Do you think Conner’s not good enough to meet Sophie’s dad?”

“Oh my God, no! That’s not what I think at all.” I watched the muscles in his face relax. “I’m shocked because Sophie has
never
taken any guy to meet her dad. That’s a super-huge step for her.”

Adam seemed appeased by my answer and a smile tugged at his lips. “He really likes Sophie. If what you say is true, then she must feel the same.”

I hopped off the counter, bringing my coffee with me, and sat on the stool next to him. I nudged his elbow. “So . . . um . . . what’s on the agenda?”

“I’ve got the whole day planned out for us.”

My eyes beamed. “Really?”

“No.”

“Huh?”

He quirked his brow. “You say ‘huh’ a lot.”

I nudged him again. This time harder. “Well, you confuse me a lot.”

He smiled smugly. “I thought we could go get some breakfast first.” His tone was so casual, as if we just went to breakfast together all the time.

“Then what?”

“We’ll see.”
Cryptic, much?
“I’m not really a planner, Princess. I start out with an idea and then see where the day takes me. Are you in or out?”

I hesitated.
In or out?
It was such a simple question, but it felt as if it pertained to much more than today’s activities. I took a leap of faith. “I’m in.”

“I knew you would be,” he said, his voice overflowing with confidence.

My eyes widened. “You did, huh?”

“There’s that ‘huh’ again.”

I rolled my eyes and stood up. “Wipe that stupid grin off your face and give me about ten minutes to get dressed and ready to go.”

“Need a hand?” His tone was very suggestive.

“Thanks, but I’ve already got two,” I replied in a sing-song voice, holding up my hands and wiggling my fingers as I walked down the hall. I could hear his faint laughter behind me.

I quickly changed into jean shorts and a teal spaghetti strap tank top and slipped on a pair of black flip flops. Being the first weekend of August, the weather was stifling. For that reason, I didn’t want to put on very much makeup. I simply applied one coat of mascara and a little lip gloss before pulling my hair into a quick ponytail.