“And by have a good time you mean...”
“Get laid... Yes.”
“You do know there’s not a chance in hell I’m sleeping with Callum, right?”
If we do this right, I’m sure some people will assume we did, but that’s one area where I won’t lie to my friends.
“You say that now.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me.
“I’m serious, Cam. You know me.”
“I do. But I also know you’re probably one of the only eighteen-year-old virgins in our school. And you don’t have an excuse either. You’re smart. Funny. Gorgeous. You have all the tools, yet you’re terrified to use them. You know having sex doesn’t automatically lead to pregnancy, right?”
“Of course I do. But I don’t want to risk it. It’s not worth it to me.”
“But haven’t you been on the pill since you were like fourteen?” she asks, even though she already knows the answer.
She had to listen to me bitch for a week leading up to my appointment. Even though I insisted I had no interest in having sex, my mom was not messing around. She’s convinced I’m going to end up just like her. Which is probably why I’ve never had a ton of interest in relationships, because with them comes certain expectations. Well, that and I’ve been pining after the same guy for nearly two years to no avail.
“You know,” she finally continues, “you are going to have sex eventually.”
“And I will. After I’ve finished high school and am out from under her roof. Until then, these legs are staying closed.”
“God, you’re lame.” She groans.
“You know what, I’m going to take that as a compliment.” I give her a cheesy smile before heading toward the door and tugging it open.
“It wasn’t a compliment,” she calls after me, laughter in her voice as I step out onto the front porch.
Without responding, I pull the door closed behind me and then freeze mid-step when I see Callum standing right outside my cabin waiting for me.
He’s dressed casually in a navy tee and gray athletic shorts with his football number – 85 – on the leg. He’s wearing a pair of black slides and has a Norwood Titans ball cap turned backward on his head.
He looks good. I’ll give him that.
“Hey.” He smiles as I make my way toward him.
“Hey.” I nod, a rush of nervousness hitting me unexpectedly.
Nervous? Why would I be nervous? It’s not like any of this is real, I remind myself. Though it does little to calm the swarm of butterflies that have broken loose in my stomach.
I look around, taking note of how many people have congregated in the area. Considering the two cabins next to mine, Callum’s included, are the ones offering the beer and music, this seems to be the place to be.
“You ready for this?” he asks, offering me his arm.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” I sigh, looking down at his arm before deciding to not take it.
He lets out a low chuckle as he follows me through the crowd.
“You know, we’re going to have to touch each other eventually.” He leans in so only I can hear him.
“We’ll see about that.” I give him a pointed look before turning my gaze forward.
He steps past me, reaching back to snag my hand as he leads us to where Tripp is working on getting the keg tapped. I want to protest the contact, but there’s no time so I go with it. Tripp looks up when he sees us approach, a confused expression crossing his face when he looks down and sees Callum’s hand wrapped around mine. The look quickly fades, replaced by an easy smile.
“Where the hell did you run off to?” Tripp asks.
“I had to go grab Poppy,” he says, his voice smooth and natural.
“Well now that you’ve got her, think maybe you can give me a hand carrying this to the picnic table?” He gestures to a table that sits between their cabin and the one next to theirs.
“Yeah, I got you.” Callum releases my hand and I’m grateful. He had a death grip around my fingers and wouldn’t let go.
I watch as he squats down, wraps his arms around the keg, and lifts it off the ground without any assistance from Tripp.
“Dude, that’s close to two hundred pounds,” he calls after Callum, who’s already halfway to the picnic table.
“Which is why your pussy ass couldn’t do it by yourself,” Callum calls back, dropping the keg on top of the table seconds later.
I’m not gonna lie, I’m pretty impressed. Not only did he carry that damn thing by himself, which is not only heavy but also awkward, but he made doing so look easy. I remember a time when he couldn’t even do a pull up on the playground monkey bars. I’m betting now he can do a hell of a lot more than just a pull up.
“So Poppy.” Tripp steps up beside me. “You enjoying yourself so far?”
I’ve never been friends with Tripp, but we’ve always been friendly. He’s a nice enough guy. Well, for the most part.
He plays football with Callum though I can’t remember his position. Safety maybe. All I know is that he’s good. Good enough to land him a football scholarship to LSU in the fall. I was honestly surprised that he didn’t end up at Texas A&M with Callum. Those two have been inseparable since freshman year.
He’s good-looking. Average height. Muscular, like a lot of the football players. He keeps his dirty blonde hair short and styled back away from his face. And while most of the guys our age are cleaned shaved, he rocks a permanent two-week-old scruff.
“Yeah.” I shrug, falling quiet when Callum steps up in front of us.
“There. Anything else, princess?” He pokes fun at Tripp.
“Fuck you, man. I could’ve done that too. Just thought it would be easier if two of us were on it.”
“Excuses. Excuses.” Callum clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
“You’re lucky you’re my best friend,” Tripp warns.
“Am I?” Callum counters, a smile on his face.
“Man, Poppy, get this dude out of here before I remind him who can kick whose ass.” Tripp nods at someone off in the distance.
“We can have a go. Settle it once and for all. Though I gotta say, I don’t think the odds are in your favor,” Callum continues to take jabs at his friend.
“Whatever. I gotta go. I see a certain brunette calling my name.” With that, he slides by Callum and disappears into the crowd.
“Are you two always like that?” I ask once we’re alone.
“Sometimes it’s worse.” He chuckles, dropping an arm over my shoulder. I immediately tense. “You need to relax, P. If we’re going to sell this, you’re going to have to trust me. Now come on, let’s get a drink.” Without waiting for me to respond, he tucks me closer to his side and takes off toward the keg, leaving me struggling to match his long strides as I walk next to him.
CHAPTER SIX
CALLUM
“SO, ARE YOU GOING TO tell me what’s going on?” I turn from where I’m refilling mine and Poppy’s beers to see Tripp slide up next to me.
“What are you talking about?” I play stupid, even though I’m fairly certain I know what he’s referring to.