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I couldn’t believe I was walking away from Cami, but was furious with her. Now I knew who she was and what she was capable of on the courts, I understood her even less than I had done before. What kind of person would give up that gift just to spite someone else? It seemed so petty and stupid.
Sod being sensible; I was going to drink something strong and toxic and definitely regret it tomorrow.
The kitchen was laden with alcohol, and after a brief debate, I poured myself a large Bacardi and coke.
“Jello shot?” Damon thrust a radioactive green cup under my nose.
“Ugh, no thanks, that’s just pure sugar.”
“Sugar and booze,” Damon said with a beam, and downed two of them. “What you drinking?”
“Bacardi.”
“That’s a girl’s drink.” He wrinkled his nose.
“Right, because you look like such a hard man with Jello on your chin,” I countered crossly, not in the mood for banter.
He swiped at his chin with his sleeve. “Hey, you know that girl you were asking about? The one that went to school with Rachel? Well, she says she knew a Camille Something-Smith and she was great. Really bubbly, fun, stunningly pretty and very popular, until she moved away. That doesn’t sound like your Cami though, does it?”
“No,” I shook my head, “it doesn’t sound like Cami at all.” But it was her, or it had been her at some point. Now she was miserable, angry and unpopular, all by choice. Why hadn’t she gone back to Greenlee and picked up her life there? None of it made any sense, unless of course, things were far worse than I'd given her credit for.
Aw, hell. I'd been a total dick to her when she’d told me the truth. I went to the window and looked out, but the bench was empty and there was no sign of her.
“I’ve got to go,” I told Damon, putting down my half-finished drink.
“Home to bed already?” He gave me a ‘don’t you dare’ kind of glare.
I huffed, necked the rest of the glass and said, “No, I’m going to kiss a girl.”
His face broke out into a beam again, and he clapped me on the shoulder. “Make sure you do.”
“Where’s Rachel?”
“In the hall, I think, why? You can’t kiss her!”
“She knows where Cami lives, dumbass.”
“Oh, right. Hold on, are you saying it is the same Cami?”
“Yeah, and she’s all those things Rachel said, and more.” A lot more.
~
I CAUGHT UP WITH CAMI at the gates to her driveway. She was hiding in the hedge watching the house nervously.
“Hi,” I said, making her jump.
“Luke? For goodness’ sake, don’t creep up on people like that!”
“I didn’t remotely creep. What are you doing?”
“My mother’s home already, I didn’t expect her to be back for hours,” she hissed in a whisper.
“Is that a problem?”
She gave me an impatient look, indicating it obviously was.
I frowned. “Are you not allowed out? Like a prisoner or something? That’s ridiculous, you’re seventeen!”
She scuffed her feet, looking at the ground as she spoke. “I don’t know, I didn’t ask. I suppose it’s fine, but last time I went on a date, she was standing on the doorstep waiting for me to get back, and then she locked me in my room for two days.”
“No way! How long ago was that?”
“Three years.” She spoke very quietly now.
“Three years? You haven’t been on a date in three years? You’re practically a nun.”
“Shhh,” she dragged me deeper into the hedge next to her. “I know, right, it’s bizarre, but that’s my life.”
“She’s not on the doorstep now,” I said, peering through the leaves.
“She probably thinks I’m in my room. I usually would be.” She gave a large shiver and I put my hand on her arm. It was ice cold.
“You’re soaking wet and freezing, you can’t stay out here all night.”
“I know, I’m just wondering if I can climb up to my window.” She gave another shudder and her teeth started to chatter.
“Not in that state; you’d better have my sweater.”
She started to protest, but I'd already pulled it over my head and off.
She eyed my bare chest in the darkness. “If this is a way to get me turned on, you picked a very bad moment.”
“Just put it on before you get sick,” I told her, in my coaching teacher voice.
“Fine,” she gave a small lift of one shoulder and then peeled her own top off, giving me an unexpected heart failure as she now just wore a bra. A really nice black lace bra, with tiny red bows on the straps. Cami smirked at my wide eyes.
“No point in getting your top wet too, otherwise what will you go home in?”
“Yeah, I didn’t think that far ahead,” I sighed with disappointment as her breasts disappeared from view again under my sweater. “I can’t imagine what people will think if I walk home like this.” I crossed my arms over my own chest, even though I didn’t really feel cold yet.
“You’d better climb in with me,” she said, biting her lip, and actually looking slightly nervous.
I wondered if it was nerves about her mother catching us or the idea of being alone in her bedroom with me. Either way, I was totally up for it.
“It doesn’t look too difficult to get in. We could go up that tree, across the garage roof and then through that window?” I pointed to an open upstairs window.
She nodded. “That’s my room.”
“I’m game if you are. Are you sure you wouldn’t rather just walk in the front door, and throw my jumper out to me when you’ve found something else to wear?”
“No. We might as well do it right now; who knows when she’ll think to check on me?”
So, we did. Up the tree, over the roof of the garage and in the window.
We were both muffling laughter by this point and I realised I was actually having fun, a lot more fun than I'd had in ages.
Cami closed the window and the temperature became pleasant as she shut out the night air.
She immediately removed my sweater from her body and handed it to me. She was back down to just her leggings and her bra.
“You’re not shy at all are you?” I said, impressed.
“Negative body image is about comparing yourself to others, I don’t care about how anyone else looks, so...” She gave a dismissive shrug. “Are you going to put that back on?”
“I’m thinking about not,” I said, giving her my best smoulder. “And as we’re both already topless, well almost, it seems too opportune a moment to pass up kissing you.”
Cami cocked her head, “Oh. Okay then.”
“Really? Just like that?” I moved closer, resting one hand on her waist.
“I’m not good at playing this game, I wouldn’t know how.”
“Right,” I said, marvelling at her honesty and lack of guile, “because you haven’t been on a date in three years. Have you not kissed anyone since then?”
“I didn’t actually kiss him.” She gave me an almost shy smile and I grasped the significance. As crazy as it seemed, I was going to be her first kiss.
Which meant I had to take it slow. I wanted to get to grips with those fantastic breasts and kiss her with the feverish heat she was making me feel, but I couldn’t rush straight into it like that.
I pulled her body against mine and slid my hand into the curve of her back. She leaned into me and as I lowered my head, she closed her eyes. I felt something much stronger than passion alight inside me, something closer to affection, liking, respect, a desire to protect her, to be with her, a burning need to make her smile.
The kiss was gentle, exploring, and tender, right up until the moment she raised her hands to grip my shoulders and then slid them down on to my bare chest. Her touch was too much, and I deepened the kiss, forgetting all about holding back.
It went from tender to burning hot in a nanosecond. It might have gone way too far too fast if there hadn’t been the sound of someone coming up the stairs. We both froze, then Cami broke free, grabbed my sweater from where I'd dropped it and propelled me across the room to another door before I could even grasp what was happening. She opened it and shoved me through, and I found myself in a walk-in closet. The door shut, plunging me into darkness.