“Woo! You look hot!”
I spun in a circle to show Bree her creation, “I love it! It's perfect for me.”
“I knew it would be.” She winked as Konrad came up behind her with drinks and they sat at one of the poker tables.
I stood behind her chair and tried not to look like I was searching for Chase. All of a sudden the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I looked to my right to find him staring at me and unconsciously biting his lip. My face flamed and I tried to pay attention to Bree losing Konrad's money instead of those lips. As Chase walked by, he grabbed my right hand and rubbed his thumb over the ring he gave me before dropping it and sitting at the other end of the table. I watched two games and reveled in Chase's booming laugh as everyone at the table ragged each other for losing money. Konrad stood up after the second game and gave me strict orders to sit in for him and to not lose his money while he went to the restroom. Guess he forgot that I was so horrible people wanted me to play with them because it was a guarantee they would get my money.
“You better just hand over all his chips now Princess, they won't be here by the time he gets back anyway.” Chase teased and flashed his signature smirk.
“It's about time.” Bree whispered leaning into me.
“For what?”
“He must've finally got some. This is the happiest he's been in two weeks.”
Not that I had any right to be, but I was instantly jealous of whoever he had been with. My heart clenched just thinking about Chase in that way. I felt like I was cheating on Brandon with my thoughts alone, and I hated it. Thankfully Konrad came back before I could do any damage, because not only did I not have any idea what kind of hand I had, but I could feel Chase's eyes on me every few seconds and it was seriously distracting. The tension between us was palpable, even in this room full of people and I needed to get away from him. I walked around until I found Mom and Dad sitting at another table and wrapped my arms around her neck.
“How are you guys doing over here?”
“I'm winning! Can you believe it Harper?” Mom's smile was contagious.
“No, have you been cheating?” Bree's family taught me to play, and if anyone was as bad as me, it was definitely Claire.
“Course not! But I'm pretty sure Robert is.” She mock whispered.
I laughed and grabbed her empty beer bottle, “Need another?”
“Oh yes please, sweetie!”
“Anyone else?”
Three other people I didn't know said yes so I headed for the kitchen and grabbed five.
“Nu uh. If I'm not drinking, you're not drinking.”
I shot a sideways glance at Chase, “Well then why don't you have one?”
“Because I don't drink anymore.” He shrugged and looked around the kitchen for a moment.
“Since when?” I hadn't seen him drink in months, but I didn't know he'd actually stopped.
Chase stopped looking around and pierced me with his blue eyes, “Since I was a jackass and hurt my Princess.”
He said my Princess. My. I had goose bumps covering my body. “Huh...I didn't realize.”
“You're the one that told me I should stop.” He said it matter-of-factly.
“But I didn't mean you had to Chase. You're grown, you can do whatever you want.”
“I know. Nothing good ever came from drinking though.”
Who was this guy, and what did he do with Chase? “Do you want to split one? Nothing will happen from half a beer, right?”
He slapped his stomach and raised his voice an octave, “I guess my little body can handle half a beer.”
“You're so dumb. Help me with these, I'm hanging out at your mom's table.” I never could call them Mom and Dad in front of Chase. Thinking about them as my parents when I had these feelings for him was beyond awkward.
We watched Claire win two hundred dollars, without cheating, and even though I kept my beer in between us, Chase never touched it. With five minutes left of the year, everyone bunched around the massive TVs all over the house waiting for the countdown to begin. I found Bree and Konrad and joined them, though I doubt they knew I was there. They weren't waiting for midnight, they already had their tongues down the each other’s throats.
The countdown started and when we hit 'six', I was yanked back to the darkened hall and found the deepest blue eyes staring into my own. His hands cupped my face and the pad of his thumbs brushed back and forth over my cheekbones. I vaguely heard the party chant the final numbers before erupting into cheers and Chase's lips softly pressed into mine. I stood stunned for a few seconds before wrapping my arms around his neck and moving my mouth against his. When he traced my bottom lip with his tongue, I opened my mouth in invitation and he didn't disappoint. My stomach heated and I ached to press my body to his. He stumbled back to the wall opposite where we'd been and grabbed my hips, bringing me to rest between his legs. One hand went back to my hair while the other found its way to the small of my back, bringing me even closer to him and I moaned into his mouth. We poured four and a half months of longing and ignoring our chemistry into that one kiss...when it was over, I knew I'd never be the same. He rested his forehead against mine, and I had to press a hand to my chest, I swear my heart was about to explode.
“Harper.” His voice was rough and passionate, “I will think about that kiss for the rest of my life.” He held me back, stepped away and watched me for a moment, then turned to leave the house.