didn’t deserve the seat beside her.
Joss watched, looking suspicious, as he ascended the risers toward her. He stopped next to her and held the box of popcorn he’d grabbed at concessions out to her. She looked at it for a moment and then back up to him.
“Peace offering.” He took a deep breath as he waited for her to say something.
“Did you poison it?” She watched him coolly. He deserved that.
“No. I’ll share it with you. If you die, I die. We’ll be all Romeo and Juliet about it.”
She studied him for a moment. When she finally edged to the side, signaling that he had her permission to sit, he handed her the box of popcorn and joined her. He enjoyed being close to her rather more than he should, considering he’d already told her he didn’t want to like her. He wasn’t lying when he’d said it. It was blatantly, not to mention hurtfully, honest. He felt like a piece of shit when he let his mind go to the places his body wanted to go with her. It was guilt. This couldn’t possibly be okay. Of course, logic said it was, but his damn guilt-ridden mind said he deserved to suffer life alone.
He caught himself getting closer and closer to her body as the game wore on. The Bristol Tigers junior varsity volleyball team was kicking ass, and both Natalie and Harper were spending a good deal of time on the bench by the time they neared the end of the second match. That wasn’t necessarily any offense to either of them. Harper and Nat had started, and they were so far ahead there was no reason not to let the usual benchwarmers play for a while.
When he and Joss had moved close enough together that their legs were touching, he stopped breathing for a moment. All he could think about was her skin. She had pale alabaster skin against her dark brown hair and stunning blue eyes. Her skin looked as smooth as silk, and there was so little separating him from that skin right now. She had to feel incredible. There was no chance she couldn’t feel just as soft under his fingers as she looked, and by the time she excused herself to the restroom, he was so aroused there was little chance he’d be standing up anytime soon.
Watching her walk down the bleacher stairs didn’t help matters. She was dressed more casually than he usually saw her. She dressed up typically, no doubt for her job, but tonight she was wearing jeans and a fitted long sleeve knit shirt. Her jeans made her ass look amazing, and he watched every step she took, getting more and more aroused the farther away from him she moved. When she returned, she sat just as close to him as she’d been when she’d left, and his heart started pounding. The combination of want and need coupled with confusion and guilt was intensely painful and at the same time intoxicating. He needed to be okay with wanting her, because regardless of the bad things he felt, he so wanted more of the good feelings that he was nearly willing to accept the bad along with it—torturous as that might turn out to be.
Shortly before the end of the third and final match when Harper set up Nat and she spiked a perfect ace, Joss shot to her feet, squealing as she went. Isaiah clapped as he laughed at her. When she practically sat in his lap as she clumsily tried to clap and sit at the same time, he gripped her hips with his hands. She sank to his thigh, teetering precariously off to the side of him.
“Inappropriate behavior for a volleyball game, don’t ya think?” He was speaking with his lips nearly against her ear as he still held her farthest hip to steady her from toppling onto the ground at his feet.
She froze gasping as his fingers squeezed against her skin. As she looked to him, he caught the furious pink of her cheeks. She blushed a lot, and it certainly wasn’t the first time he’d seen it. He liked the way that pale skin could turn scarlet in half a second flat, and when her lips pursed as she looked at him, it was his turn to gasp. He was thinking about kissing those
Joss watched, looking suspicious, as he ascended the risers toward her. He stopped next to her and held the box of popcorn he’d grabbed at concessions out to her. She looked at it for a moment and then back up to him.
“Peace offering.” He took a deep breath as he waited for her to say something.
“Did you poison it?” She watched him coolly. He deserved that.
“No. I’ll share it with you. If you die, I die. We’ll be all Romeo and Juliet about it.”
She studied him for a moment. When she finally edged to the side, signaling that he had her permission to sit, he handed her the box of popcorn and joined her. He enjoyed being close to her rather more than he should, considering he’d already told her he didn’t want to like her. He wasn’t lying when he’d said it. It was blatantly, not to mention hurtfully, honest. He felt like a piece of shit when he let his mind go to the places his body wanted to go with her. It was guilt. This couldn’t possibly be okay. Of course, logic said it was, but his damn guilt-ridden mind said he deserved to suffer life alone.
He caught himself getting closer and closer to her body as the game wore on. The Bristol Tigers junior varsity volleyball team was kicking ass, and both Natalie and Harper were spending a good deal of time on the bench by the time they neared the end of the second match. That wasn’t necessarily any offense to either of them. Harper and Nat had started, and they were so far ahead there was no reason not to let the usual benchwarmers play for a while.
When he and Joss had moved close enough together that their legs were touching, he stopped breathing for a moment. All he could think about was her skin. She had pale alabaster skin against her dark brown hair and stunning blue eyes. Her skin looked as smooth as silk, and there was so little separating him from that skin right now. She had to feel incredible. There was no chance she couldn’t feel just as soft under his fingers as she looked, and by the time she excused herself to the restroom, he was so aroused there was little chance he’d be standing up anytime soon.
Watching her walk down the bleacher stairs didn’t help matters. She was dressed more casually than he usually saw her. She dressed up typically, no doubt for her job, but tonight she was wearing jeans and a fitted long sleeve knit shirt. Her jeans made her ass look amazing, and he watched every step she took, getting more and more aroused the farther away from him she moved. When she returned, she sat just as close to him as she’d been when she’d left, and his heart started pounding. The combination of want and need coupled with confusion and guilt was intensely painful and at the same time intoxicating. He needed to be okay with wanting her, because regardless of the bad things he felt, he so wanted more of the good feelings that he was nearly willing to accept the bad along with it—torturous as that might turn out to be.
Shortly before the end of the third and final match when Harper set up Nat and she spiked a perfect ace, Joss shot to her feet, squealing as she went. Isaiah clapped as he laughed at her. When she practically sat in his lap as she clumsily tried to clap and sit at the same time, he gripped her hips with his hands. She sank to his thigh, teetering precariously off to the side of him.
“Inappropriate behavior for a volleyball game, don’t ya think?” He was speaking with his lips nearly against her ear as he still held her farthest hip to steady her from toppling onto the ground at his feet.
She froze gasping as his fingers squeezed against her skin. As she looked to him, he caught the furious pink of her cheeks. She blushed a lot, and it certainly wasn’t the first time he’d seen it. He liked the way that pale skin could turn scarlet in half a second flat, and when her lips pursed as she looked at him, it was his turn to gasp. He was thinking about kissing those
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