Chapter 38

Rowena

The cold beer bottle in my hands was a bit of a comfort as I wandered the party, trying to spot Eric. But each time I got a glimpse of his blond hair, it quickly disappeared again before I could talk to him.

With a sigh, I finished off the last of my beer and tossed it into the trash can and looked around one last time.

The party continued to rage around me, the music pumping heavily through the air. Across the room, I saw Adrian playing a game of beer pong with some other warriors and I couldn’t help but smile a bit.

His dark hair seemed to glisten in the low lights of the party, and the way he interacted so confidently with the others made him even more attractive. And then, when he turned to me and shot me a wink, I felt my heart skip.

This was our signal.

Blushing, I walked through the thick throng of people and made my way into the closet in the hallway, where Adrian and I were supposed to meet. With one last furtive glance over my shoulder, I slipped inside and melted into the rows of jackets and shirts.

I felt my heart pounding in my chest as I quickly pulled my lipgloss out of my pocket and reapplied it. I wanted everything to be perfect for my first kiss with Adrian. Perfect…

Finally, after what felt like forever, the door cracked open. I couldn’t make out his features, but I could see Adrian’s tall, muscular silhouette slip into the closet before the door closed again and cast us in darkness once more.

Neither of us spoke. As the muted sounds of the party continued on in the background, we moved toward each other in the darkness. The alcohol I had drank made everything fuzzy and warm around the edges, and as I felt his hands slip around me, I relaxed into him rather than tensing away.

For a few long moments, we just stood there, my arms looped around Adrian’s neck as his hands roamed my waist, slipping up beneath my jacket. The air between us grew hot and thick, like the summer air right before a storm.

And then he kissed me.

It was slow and tender at first, and oh so sweet. The taste of my cherry lipgloss mixed with the warmth of his lips, and I leaned into him a little more, smiling against him.

The kiss deepened then, grew more fervent and electric. Our lips parted, our tongues twisting around one another.

This was exactly what I had dreamed of: foreign yet somehow familiar, comforting and electrifying all at once, as though we had kissed before and yet were still curious strangers exploring one another.

And as his hands slipped up my skirt and began to caress my thighs, I shivered with excitement.

Our lips pulled apart with a wet smack as his cool hand stroked my thigh, his head dipping down to kiss my neck. I tilted my head back against the jackets hanging behind me and moaned softly, reveling in the sensation of his lips on my sensitive skin.

In one fluid movement, Adrian then looped his arm around my waist and spun me around, pressing me up against the back wall of the closet. With his other hand he picked up my thigh, pressing it against his hip so that I was standing on one leg.

Grinning, I bucked my hips into him. A tingle of excitement ran down my spine.

Would this be more than just a first kiss? Would I be losing my virginity tonight, to my biggest crush of all time, no less?

As he slipped his hand further up my skirt and began to rub the soft lace of my panties, I couldn’t contain it any longer.

“Adrian…” I whispered.

But then something changed. He stopped, as though frozen. For a few moments we just stood there in the dark closet, our chests heaving up against one another. And then, slowly, he lowered his hand.

“Adrian?” I murmured. “Is something—”

Before I could finish, the door opened and he slipped out, leaving me there alone.

I felt my heart sink as I stood there in the cramped closet with my dress still rumpled from what almost could have been. As I waited there, chewing my lip, Adrian never returned—and I couldn’t help but wonder…

What had I done wrong?

The chemistry between us had been electric, sparks flying, our bodies moving in tandem. It had been perfect, finally, after all this time.

And yet Adrian had left. Just like that.

A single tear threatened to spill, but I quickly blinked it away as I smoothed down my dress. No, there had to be an explanation for this. Was he sick? Nervous, maybe? It had to be something like that.

As I breathlessly slipped back out of the closet, I peered around in search of Adrian, but didn’t see him anywhere.

“Hey,” I said to a random passerby. “Have you seen Adrian?”

“Adrian?” The warrior furrowed his brow. “I—” Before the warrior could finish, there was suddenly a noise coming from the kitchen. I froze upon hearing what sounded like shouting, and murmuring from the surrounding crowd.

Pushing my way through, I finally caught sight of him—or rather, them.

Eric and Adrian stood in the middle of the kitchen, their noses almost pressed up against one another as low, intimidating growls rumbled in their throats. I felt my breath catch as I saw the scene in front of me.

“What’s going on?” I blurted out, shoving my way through the crowd. “Eric, Adrian, are you two fighting?”

Before Eric could answer, Adrian chuckled and pointed at something sitting on the kitchen table. “I guess someone got a little butthurt over a necklace,” Adrian said, shaking his head.

I frowned as my eyes followed Adrian’s finger to see the talisman I had given Eric sitting in the middle of the table. The leather strap had been broken, as though ripped off violently. I hesitantly picked up the talisman and regarded it in my palm for a moment before looking up at Eric.

“Eric?” I asked softly. “What’s wrong?”

“He’s jealous, clearly,” Adrian answered for him, reaching into his shirt and pulling out his own talisman. “Because you bought that for him the same night you bought me this.”

I couldn’t help but frown again. Around us, the other bystanders began murmuring and dispersing, clearly losing interest in the petty argument. But the furious look in Eric’s eyes confused me.

“Eric,” I said, taking a step forward, “what’s there to be jealous about? I bought this for you as a nice gesture.”

“Is that so?” Eric asked, snapping his head around to finally look at me. “Because from what I understand, it was Adrian’s idea anyway.”

“What? I mean, yes, it was Adrian’s idea, but—”

“So it means nothing,” Eric growled. “You didn’t buy it for me. You bought it because he told you to.”

I was taken aback. Eric didn’t normally speak to me like this, not with this much anger. And over something so small as a trinket from an antique store?

“I didn’t realize it would be an issue,” I said, managing a wry laugh. “Look, I’ll get you something else if—”

“I don’t want anything from you.”

Eric’s last words came out like a dagger thrown at a target, leaving me in shock. Before I could even say anything else, he suddenly stormed out of the house, the screen door slamming behind him.

Once he was gone, I slowly turned toward Adrian with the talisman still in my hand and simply blinked at him, confused.

“Look, I don’t know either,” he said, splaying his hands out in a show of innocence. “He just came at me.”

I swallowed and looked down at the talisman. It never occurred to me that maybe buying a gift for Eric at Adrian’s suggestion would be such a problem; hell, I had thought it would bring all three of us together.

Suddenly, Adrian reached out and wiped his thumb across my cheek with a chuckle. “Your lipgloss is smeared,” he teased.

A slight blush colored my cheeks at his words. “That’s your fault,” I replied, referring to our romp in the closet.

Adrian cocked his head to the side and shot me a confused look. “What?” he asked, laughing slightly. “You drunk or something?”

Before I could answer, Adrian ruffled my hair and walked away, leaving me standing there confused—again. I watched his fading form until he disappeared into the crowd, and once he was gone, my free hand slowly raised to touch my lips.

Adrian was the one who I kissed, right?

As I stood there, a soft breeze from outside blew in, causing the screen door to shudder on its frame. I turned my head and felt my shoulders slump when I saw a distant form sitting by the pond out behind the house. Eric.

Gathering my courage, I pushed out into the chilly night air and followed him.