Delicate (10 page)

We dance a few more songs. Every once in a while, I catch a glimpse of Grant and Shayna on the dance floor. They look like
they’re
supposed to be together, and that makes me cringe a little. Grant looks so at ease with a handsome smile on his face and his hand resting on her
twenty-two-inch-waist
. I can’t stop my mind from wandering back to how safe I felt cradled in his arms the night I fell asleep at his house.

“Syd?” Trevor says. I shake my head, dissolving the thoughts of Grant. “Hey, lost ya there for a second.”

“No way, I’m all yours,” I say.

“In that case, are you ready to get out of here?”

I look around the room. It
has
really
cleared out.

“Sure, ready when you are. Just let me say goodbye to Quinn and Tess.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you out front,” he says, kissing me on the cheek and breezing past me.

I find Quinn and Daniel dancing closely near an archway. I run over and whisper that I’m leaving.

“Good luck, be safe,” she whispers back. Daniel smiles knowingly at me.
Nice, Quinn, way to keep your mouth shut.

Across the room, Tess and Oliver are sitting comfortably side-by-side. His arm is draped casually across her shoulders, and
she’s
leaning into him, looking totally engrossed in their conversation. I turn back, glad that they’ve finally connected. I’ll catch up with her tomorrow.

When I finally make it to the exit, my skin prickles with anticipation even in the warm, sticky Atlanta air. The streets are crowded, and Trevor and I sit in traffic for a long time before we’re able to make our way to the interstate. I stare out the window up at the clear sky. The moon is massive tonight. I always feel so small when I really take the time to look at the moon, like I’m such a tiny speck in a massive universe. Tonight, it brightens the dark night in a peaceful way. I wonder if things that have always looked the same to me, like the moon, will somehow look different after tonight. Will I be the same Sydney when I wake up? I wonder if Trevor will look at
me differently after we sleep together
.

As we pull on to the ramp, I glance over at the car next to us. Grant and Shayna are laughing together in his sleek, black car. I try to imagine what
they’re
talking about. Is it a lighthearted chat like he and I had while we worked on our project? I imagine all of the interesting things that Shayna will have to add. I turn my attention back to Trevor and squeeze his free ha
nd
in mine, just as he speeds around the convertible in front of us, leaving Grant and Shayna far behind. Exactly where they belong tonight. On
our
night.

The lake house is tucked deep back in the woods off of a narrow dirt road. I guess I’d sort of expected that Trevor and I would be the first ones to arrive
,
being that it
’
s his family’s house and all, but
,
surprisingly, when we pull down the drive, the place is packed. I barely recognize any of the faces we pass as we make our way into the house. The
y’re
all Trevor’s friends from our school, and some from his league lacrosse team. I can’t help but feel a little out of place, even at his side.

He exchanged hellos with virtually everyone here, and introduced me. But I really wish that Quinn or Tess were here. After endless conversations in which I ha
ve
zero participation in, the house start
s
to clear out.
I’m
standing in the doorway, watching the dozens of headlights disappear into the woods when Trevor c
omes
up behind me. His touch signals a chill that starts at the top of my head and travels down through my toes. He brushes the hair off of the nape of my neck and presses his lips to it lightly.

“Well, hello there, stranger,” I say, turning to face him. I wrap my arms around his neck.

“Hi, yourself,” he says. He leans in and his lips part mine. Our mouths move together like this is their sole purpose.  I’m completely lost in the moment, totally uncaring that there are still other people in the house. How did I get so lucky? How did I end up here tonight, with someone who love
s
me so completely? And then, I remember the lie I had to tell to be here. And my dad.

“Shoot!” I say, pulling away. Trevor grunts in frustration.

“What?” he asks, breathlessly.

“Just give me a minute, I forgot to call my dad,” I say. Trevor rolls his eyes as I hold up a finger to signify one minute. I grab my iPhone off of the counter and make my way upstairs to find somewhere quiet to make my call.

Trevor’s room is at the end of the hall. I’
ve
been here before with him and his parents during the summer. I close the door behind me and plop down on the enormous bed.
I’m
absolutely dreading making this call. I take a deep breath as I count the rings. One…Two…Three
…
please go to voicemail, please go to voicemail
, I silently plead.

“Sydney?” Dad grumbles. Crap, I’
ve
woken him up.

“Hey, dad, sorry to wake you. We’re just headed to bed,” I say quietly. I hold my breath waiting for his response.

“Okay, Syd. See you in the morning,” he says
in
a groggy voice. My lungs thank me as I finally exhale.

“Okay, love you, Dad.”

That was easier than I’d expected. I set my phone down on Trevor’s desk and open the bedroom door. As I step out into the hall, I hear obnoxious giggling that can only belong to one person. It isn’t the kind of laugh that makes you want to join in
—
it’s the kind that annoys the crap out of you, especially in the dark, quiet house. I spin around, wide-eyed. Shayna and Grant stand at the end of the hall. What are they doing here? Why is Grant trying to ruin my night? Shayna’s laughter is deafening and I can’t even imagine anything in the world that
could be
that funny. Her back is pressed up against the wall and Grant is leaning in, trying to quiet her down. Talking softly. Too soft
ly
for me to hear. Damn. He leads her into one of the other bedrooms at the end of the hall, and closes the door behind them. I scowl at the closed door and stomp down the stairs.

“Stupid rah-rah,” I mumble under my breath.

I tip-toe back to Trevor’s room and quickly change out of this stupid dress and into my requisite pajama pants and tank-top and lay my pearls on his desk neatly. When Trevor finally finds me, my face is still hot with anger.

“What is Shayna Gillan doing here?” I demand. His head jerks back in surprise.

“Uh, I pretty much invited everyone, Syd. What’s the problem?”

Grant having the nerve to show up here with her is the problem.

“Nothing,” I sigh. “I just…I just didn’t expect to see her here I guess.”

“Okay,” he mutters, shaking his head like I’m a crazy person. Which, obviously, I sort of am for worrying about Shayna and Grant right now. “Everything cool with your dad?”

He’s changing the subject. He’s probably chalked my mood up to being irked by his long ago confession that he once hooked up with Shayna. Then again, what guy within fifty miles ha
s
n’t?

“Yeah, I told him I was about to go to bed,” I say.

That gets his attention. He let
s
the bag that
he’s
holding fall to the ground and pulls me in close to him.
His warm breath envelop
s my face.
Surrounds me with familiarity, and with all of the new things that are about to happen
, s
wirling around in the air around us.

“Well, then, let’s go. Wouldn’t want to lie to dear old dad, would you?” he laughs.

The twisting nerves return to my stomach. His lips find the back of my neck again, his favorite spot, and then he pulls me down onto the bed with him.

“You’re beautiful,” he murmurs, cupping my face in his hands.

“I love you,” I say.

He slides me closer to him, pressing himself against me. Every inch of me is shaky. And tingly. And perfect. The weight of him above me should feel crushing, but instead, it feel
s
safe. It feels good to be so wanted. My hands fumble through his hair, down his strong arms. Anywhere. Everywhere. Just wanting to be close to him.

My internal clock wakes me up the next morning when the room is still dark. I’m curled up next to Trevor, wearing his undershirt. I want to kick myself for promising
Sam I’d workout this morning. I slide silently off of Trevor’s warm chest and to the edge of the bed.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asks in a raspy, sleep filled voice
.
He reaches over and runs his fingers through my hair, tugging on it softly. A chill runs through me and I close my eyes, wishing more than
I can
remember wishing for anything
before
, that I could crawl back into bed with him.

“I have gym, I have to go,” I say.

“I don’t think so,” he says, pulling back down again and kissing my neck.

“I can’t miss, I did yesterday.”

“You worked out yesterday,” he says with a wink.

I frown at him. “You aren’t making this easy.”

His mouth finds the spot on my neck again. “Please stay. Who knows how long it’ll be before I get to wake up next to you again
?
”

God I want to stay. I’d waited so long for this, and now I doubt it’ll ever get old. I want to feel his arms around me again. I want to hold on to his strong bicep while he moves above me. I shake the thoughts from my head.

“I’m sorry. I have to go,” I say, crawling toward him and kissing him lightly. He responds by biting on my bottom lip.
He’s
so not making this easy.

“Come on, get up. I’ve got to get dressed and then you have to take me to my car.”

Trevor sighs and flops back down onto his pillow. His annoyance is obvious, and after our phenomenal night, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t sting.

I gather up my clothes and pe
e
k out the window at the rising sun over the lake. Outside, I hear a beep and glance toward the porch. My mouth involuntarily falls open.
Grant.
Wearing a white undershirt and his suit pants, and carrying Shayna in his arms to his car. Just like he cradled me at his house the other night. I push the anger
away.
I’d
just had the most incredible night of my life. Why should I care if Grant spent his with Shayna?