I felt a hand rubbing my shoulder.
Gently moving to my neck.
I groaned and rolled to my back and arched my back.
A warm sensation began to creep through my body.
I took a deep breath and knew exactly what I wanted. What I needed to calm down. My body aching and craving…
I reached for the hand touching me and pulled it down.
My chest tightened for a second, but that was okay. I just needed that sense of touch…
“Wake up, darling,” Talon’s voice said.
I groaned again and my eyes popped open.
Talon was in bed next to me.
His hand was over my chest, but hovering. He wasn’t actually touching me. But my hand held his wrist tight, wanting him to touch me.
My face burned red hot as I blinked fast and stared at him.
Talon was also shirtless.
I took a few breaths, but there wasn’t any room to breathe.
The ceiling felt like it was two inches above my head. And Talon was right there, right against me…
“What’s happening here?” I whispered.
“I came to check on you,” he said. “If you don’t get up now, you’ll be up all night.”
“What time is it?” I asked.
“Ten.”
“Fuck. I slept that long?”
“I don’t know what time you passed out. Do you want me to be your alarm clock too? That’ll cost more.”
“Shut up, Talon.”
“Now as far as my hand goes, that’s free,” he said with a grin. “But just be careful making that move, Winter. You don’t want to know the mess you’ll end up causing.”
“Get the fuck out of my bed, Talon,” I said. “I paid for this bed. I make the rules.”
Talon leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “Not a problem.”
He rolled back and fell out of the bed.
I screamed and jumped forward.
Talon landed on his feet.
Of course he did.
He was such a Troc, it wasn’t even funny.
I realized he was in board shorts.
“Are you going swimming?” I asked.
“Yeah. Pool’s out back.”
“You don’t have a pool.”
Talon looked back at me and smiled. “I do tonight.”
“I don’t have a bathing suit,” I said.
“But you have clothes,” he said. “See you outside, darling.”
He left the bedroom and I slowly rolled back and woke up.
I hadn’t had a nap like that in a while.
That was a good thing. A good sign.
My body was calming down.
This thing with Noah, Easton, and Xavier was going to be okay. The emotions were going to blow over and calm down. Then I could work my way back to the beach house, so I could face them.
And we’d agree to shake hands and never talk to one another again.
If they fucked with me, I’d tell the truth. All of it.
And if I fucked with them, they would finish the job they started.
No problem at all.
I felt good as I climbed down from the bunk bed.
Now, the question was: did I actually believe anything I was thinking?
The answer…
Hell no.
I stepped outside and let out a laugh.
A pool party in the Bump world was… big.
A gigantic in ground pool. A hot tub. Custom lighting in the pool. Custom lighting outside the pool. A tiki bar set up with plenty to drink. Music coming from hidden speakers. Plenty of people partying and dancing. Couples slowly getting closer for a night of fun. Guys and girls flirting with their eyes, wondering who was going to make the first move.
Bump pool parties were events.
They were planned in advance and they were something to talk about long after it was over. That created the competition for someone else to have a bigger party. And no party was ever too big or too over the top.
But the Trocs…
“Look who it is,” Brock said as he stood shirtless near a fire in a homemade fire pit made out of cinder blocks. “It’s the princess. Are you sure you can handle this kind of party?”
“Ignore him,” Emily said as she walked up from behind me. “And drink this.”
She handed me a red cup.
I looked at her and did a double take.
She wasn’t wearing a bathing suit.
She was wearing…
“You’re in your bra and panties,” I whispered.
“Oh, fuck, am I?” Emily asked. She smiled, then she winked.
“Sorry,” I said.
“Join us in the pool,” she said. “It’s really fun.”
She threw her hip into me and then walked away.
She put her hands into the air and started to dance to the music that played from a small speaker on an uneven table.
Brock got in Emily’s path and they started to dance.
If that’s what you wanted to call it.
They danced under strings of white Christmas lights that were hooked from the house to random trees. Every strand of light had at least ten lights burned out.
It was just their bodies bumping against one another, over and over.
Emily bent her knees and inched down Brock’s body.
He looked at me and grinned.
I crossed my arms.
Emily popped back up and they were getting really close again.
Then Kace appeared.
He was like a tiger pouncing as he wrapped his arms around Emily and picked her up.
She let out a laughing scream as Kace ran with her in his arms toward the pool.
He jumped and they both splashed down into the water.
Now… the pool…
It was some kind of inflatable pool.
Definitely not the warm, in ground pool water I was used to.
“Want me to carry you to the pool, Winter?” Brock asked.
“You touch me and I’ll drown you,” I said.
“I’d like to see you try,” he said.
He took a step toward me and my throat closed for a second.
My eyes moved and I saw Emily and Kace splashing each other. The splashing was nothing but flirting and the flirting quickly turned into them lunging at each other so they could kiss.
Raine sat on the edge of the pool, wearing sunglasses in the dark, nodding her head to the music. She was smoking something and she wasn’t actually here.
Fuck.
Brock kept moving closer to me.
I sipped what was in the red cup Emily gave me and my eyes watered.
It was like… gasoline.
I threw the red cup away.
“Don’t come near me,” I warned Brock.
“Don’t be afraid,” he whispered. “I don’t bite too hard. You’ll eventually like it.”
“I’ll kick your teeth down your throat.”
“I’m bigger than you.”
“I don’t care,” I said. “I don’t know who you think you are, but you and I will never happen.”
“Can I tell you a secret?” Brock asked.
I put my hand out to stop him.
He actually stopped.
“What?” I asked.
“I’ve always wanted to fuck a Bump,” he said. “And since you’re staying here for free, why don’t you earn your keep.”
I swallowed hard. “You’re pathetic, Brock.”