Read Online One Night (Friends #0.5) by Monica Murphy - Free Book Online Page A

didn’t mean anything by it.” Yeah. They so did, but I didn’t bother arguing with him. “Are you all right?”
    The tenderness in his voice, in his gaze, how sincere he sounded…it all got to be too much.
    So I’d panicked and bailed. Slipped from underneath his heavy arm, climbed out of the hot tub, snagged a towel from a nearby chair and ran away from him. He called my name as I ran away but I ignored him. What could I say?
    Absolutely nothing.
    I hid in the corner of the backyard and hurriedly slipped my clothes on, waiting for the moment I could get past Cannon and go back inside the house.
    And that’s how I ended up in the tiny bathroom, a trembling, confused mess. Turning, I faced the mirror, blinking at my reflection. My mascara was smeared beneath my eyes and my clothes stuck to my damp body. I looked awful.
    Awful.
    Grabbing a tissue from the box on the counter, I wiped the smudged makeup from my face, then washed my hands. Ran my damp fingers through my hair, pushing it back from my face. Someone knocked on the door but I ignored them, turning the water on full blast so I couldn’t hear the music, the knocking, the yelling.
    I was having a full-blown panic attack in a tiny bathroom at Tuttle’s house on a Friday night. My life couldn’t get much worse.
    The pounding on the door got louder and I gripped the edge of the marble counter, yelling through clenched teeth, “Give me a minute!” I could tell it was a guy on the other side of the door. He was just some douche wanting to get his girl in here or do drugs. I needed to get out of here. Go home and pull the covers over my head. Try my best to forget this night was even happening.
    But then I remembered why it was happening. Who I was there for. Livvy. My best friend, my girl was leaving me tomorrow and she’d be gone for the rest of the summer. I don’t know what I’ll do without her. I can hang around with Dustin but it’s not the same. There’s an easiness I have with Livvy I don’t experience with anyone else.
    Standing up straight, I push away from the counter and go to the door, turning the lock and throwing open the door to find…
    Cannon standing there, his eyes a little wild as he blinked down at me. “Why’d you run off?”
    I’m so startled he’s in front of me I just stare at him for a moment before I reply, “Why do you care?” I clamp my lips shut after the words leave me, feeling embarrassed. Ashamed. He’s being nice and I’m crapping all over him.
    “I just wanted to make sure you were all right,” he murmurs just before he starts to turn away from me.
    “Wait.” I grab hold of his arm, my fingers barely reaching around his thick forearm. “I’m sorry.”
    He glances down at my hand on his arm before lifting his gaze to mine once more. His eyes are…beautiful. A mixture of blues that I find myself becoming a little lost in. “Those guys freak you out?” His voice is gentle, like he’s afraid I might startle easy.
    I nod, not saying a word, yet still holding on to him.
    “Did I freak you out?” He looks worried that he might’ve and I almost want to laugh at the absurdity.
    Instead, I shake my head, still silent.
    “Good.” The relief in his voice, on his face is obvious. “I’m sorry they were such jerks.”
    “It’s not your fault.” It’s mine.
    I want to say those last two words, but I don’t. Admitting faults is not easy for anyone, especially me.
    He glances to his right, then his left, before he’s shoving his way into the bathroom, quickly shutting the door behind him. I back up until I hit the counter and I watch him warily as he turns the lock into place, keeping his back to me.
    “What are you doing?” I ask.
    Cannon starts toward me and I realize quick I can’t escape. The bathroom is tiny and he’s directly in front of me in seconds, his big hands going to my waist and lifting. I gasp when he sets me on the edge of the counter, my knees spreading when he steps in between