could respond I leaned in and cupped his face in my hands. “I don’t care about the other girls though, Chad. I just care to not be one of them.”
“You really don’t get it do you?” He asked with his cheeks still squeezed in my hands. Even with his face smooshed between my hands, he was still the most attractive guy I’d ever seen.
“What is there to get? That you’re ready, willing and able for any woman who is willing to flash her gash for a shot with you? I get it, Chad, because Noah is the same way, but I am not one of those women. I like you, Chad and that terrifies me.”
He gave me a lopsided, boyish grin and I melted. His smile always had that effect on me, because when it comes down to it, I’m just a stupid girl.
“Carrie girl it terrifies me too, but that’s not what I meant.” Cupping my face in his hands, he leaned down and my heart stopped. “What I meant was that you are the opposite of those girls. They were fillers on cold nights, drunken flings and some really truly amazing, awesome, empty sex. I don’t want empty anymore, Carrie. I want you.” Then he dropped a kiss to my forehead and pulled back, waiting for my response.
I don’t know why I didn’t respond. Part of me would like to think it was because I liked that Chad was unattainable, he was safe. But now he says he wants to attain me . My inner harpy was rearing her slutty, harpy head and shouting that I was no different than all those other girls. In the end, I wanted Chad Blake in my bed just as much as they did.
*
Shame had a giant fire pit built into the ground at the back of the cottage facing the water. The rain had left most the wood wet but he found some logs that had been protected with a tarp and now we were all sitting around, laughing and talking, the fire providing the perfect mood lighting.
I didn’t understand why Noah had kept me from this. Everyone acted the same as always, and we all got along well. I had known these guys for years, had seen most of them almost daily at our house. The only thing I could think of was that Noah wanted a life away from me. It hurt, even though I understood. I had college and a life away from here that didn’t have Noah in it. He was entitled to the same.
Cal walked over and handed an acoustic guitar to Chad and sat down with one for himself. Shamus grabbed two boiling pots, one small and one large, and flipped them over. He pulled drum sticks from the pocket of his cargo shorts and began drumming on the pots to the tune of ‘Animals’. I smiled as Chad joined in on the rhythm and Noah at bass. My God, they were awesome.
Chad began to sing, and it was obvious he was in the zone the instant he started. It was easy to see why he was the band’s lead singer. He knew the Nickelback song well and put his own ‘Chad twist’ on it. Listening to the lyrics, I chuckled to myself. Christ, the song was probably the band’s anthem. Still, I hung on every word he sang and got lost in his voice. I could tell Noah was grinding his teeth as he watched me drink in Chad and all his yumminess. The song had just come out of the bridge and as Shame stopped drumming leaving just Cal and Chad, I couldn’t help but feel like they were going to duel. But then Chad was singing again, in a gruff voice watching me as he sang the sexy lyrics.
We were parked out by the tracks’
We’re sitting in the back
And we just started getting busy
When she whispered “what was that?”
He looked at Noah and winked. I knew he was egging him on and I didn’t like it.
The wind, I think
‘Cause no one else knows where we are
But that was when she started screaming
That’s Noah outside the car!
I tried to stand immediately, but Noah stopped playing long enough to snag me by my shirt and force me to sit back down. He didn’t look happy, but he was making a point. I waited for the song to end, not looking at Chad. When it was over I ignored Chad and turned to Noah.
“That was awful of him,