how you doing?”
I
gasp in a breath of air as Cole comes to stand behind me. He places one hand on
the small of my back, and the warmth of it instantly seeps through my thin
shirt.
“Cole,
what's up man? I haven't seen you at one of these parties in a long time.”
They
move in some half hug, half handshake move that I've seen several of the guys
on campus do, but Cole never moves his other hand off my lower back. When he
pulls away from Mark he looks to the guys standing behind him and nods his head
to them in greeting.
“Yeah,
it's not really my thing,” he says as his gaze cuts back to Mark, “but my
sister’s here so I thought I'd come keep an eye on her.”
“Oh,
yeah? This your sister?” Mark indicates me with his head.
“No.”
Cole smiles. “This is Delaney.” He doesn't indicate what our relationship is,
but he leans a little closer to me, allowing Mark and his friends to draw their
own conclusions. I draw in the smell of peppermint, and I can feel the heat of
his breath on my neck he's standing so close. I don't know why both of these
things make me feel better, but I feel the beat of my heart start to slow and
some of the panic edge away.
“Right.”
Mark draws the word out, looking between the two of us. “Well, it was good
seeing you again, Cole. Tell Holden I said hey.”
“Sure
thing. Y'all have fun.”
Mark
and his friends wander off, and Cole steps in front of me. I feel him move, but
now that the panic is fading, the entire situation has left me embarrassed so I
don't look up at him.
“You
alright, Del?”
When
I don't answer, because honestly, I don't think I can without breaking out in
tears, Cole tips my chin up with one hand so my eyes are forced to meet his.
The concern swimming in those navy blue eyes is nearly my undoing. To prevent
myself from making even more of a fool of myself I take a step back, breaking
the contact between us.
“Yes,”
I draw in a deep breath and tell myself to get it together. “Yes, I'm alright,
thank you. I just don't do well in..”
“Social
situations,” Cole finishes for me. “I know, Grace told me.” He watches me for a
few moments. “If that's the case, why in the hell did you come here? This is
about as social as it gets.”
A
guy wearing a coconut bra and a grass skirt runs screaming past us.
“I
don't know. It seemed like a good idea at the time.” I give a weak smile. “You
know, in the safety of my dorm room.”
He
just shakes his head. “Here, give me that beer before you crush the can and cut
yourself.”
I
glance down. I had forgotten I was holding the can. My fingers are so tightly
wound around it that they are turning white, and I have to force them to open
so I can let go. Cole takes the beer and tosses it in a nearby trash can.
“Let's get you some water.”
“That
would be great.”
Before
I know what's happening he's grabbed my hand and is leading me through the
crowd. His palm is rough against mine, and my entire hand seems to disappear in
his. I almost trip on the curb as he leads me up and towards one of the houses,
because all I can seem to look at is our hands locked together.
“Careful,”
he calls over his shoulder. People greet him as we pass, but he seems to barely
acknowledge them. Within minutes he has us in one of the frat houses. He winds
through the rooms obviously looking for someone.
“Hey,
Trent.” I hear him call. “Hey, my sisters roommate is getting a little
overheated; can I borrow your room for a bit so she can cool down?”
His
statement is met with catcalls and whistles and I know my cheeks turn pink at
the implication. He takes it all in stride, waiting for Trent to answer. I feel
his body jerk as he reaches up to catch the keys that Trent throws at him.
“Thanks man.”
The
whistles start again as we make our way up the stairs, but Cole doesn't even
slow down. He leads me down a hallway until he comes to the last door, which he
uses the key to unlock. “Grab a
I
gasp in a breath of air as Cole comes to stand behind me. He places one hand on
the small of my back, and the warmth of it instantly seeps through my thin
shirt.
“Cole,
what's up man? I haven't seen you at one of these parties in a long time.”
They
move in some half hug, half handshake move that I've seen several of the guys
on campus do, but Cole never moves his other hand off my lower back. When he
pulls away from Mark he looks to the guys standing behind him and nods his head
to them in greeting.
“Yeah,
it's not really my thing,” he says as his gaze cuts back to Mark, “but my
sister’s here so I thought I'd come keep an eye on her.”
“Oh,
yeah? This your sister?” Mark indicates me with his head.
“No.”
Cole smiles. “This is Delaney.” He doesn't indicate what our relationship is,
but he leans a little closer to me, allowing Mark and his friends to draw their
own conclusions. I draw in the smell of peppermint, and I can feel the heat of
his breath on my neck he's standing so close. I don't know why both of these
things make me feel better, but I feel the beat of my heart start to slow and
some of the panic edge away.
“Right.”
Mark draws the word out, looking between the two of us. “Well, it was good
seeing you again, Cole. Tell Holden I said hey.”
“Sure
thing. Y'all have fun.”
Mark
and his friends wander off, and Cole steps in front of me. I feel him move, but
now that the panic is fading, the entire situation has left me embarrassed so I
don't look up at him.
“You
alright, Del?”
When
I don't answer, because honestly, I don't think I can without breaking out in
tears, Cole tips my chin up with one hand so my eyes are forced to meet his.
The concern swimming in those navy blue eyes is nearly my undoing. To prevent
myself from making even more of a fool of myself I take a step back, breaking
the contact between us.
“Yes,”
I draw in a deep breath and tell myself to get it together. “Yes, I'm alright,
thank you. I just don't do well in..”
“Social
situations,” Cole finishes for me. “I know, Grace told me.” He watches me for a
few moments. “If that's the case, why in the hell did you come here? This is
about as social as it gets.”
A
guy wearing a coconut bra and a grass skirt runs screaming past us.
“I
don't know. It seemed like a good idea at the time.” I give a weak smile. “You
know, in the safety of my dorm room.”
He
just shakes his head. “Here, give me that beer before you crush the can and cut
yourself.”
I
glance down. I had forgotten I was holding the can. My fingers are so tightly
wound around it that they are turning white, and I have to force them to open
so I can let go. Cole takes the beer and tosses it in a nearby trash can.
“Let's get you some water.”
“That
would be great.”
Before
I know what's happening he's grabbed my hand and is leading me through the
crowd. His palm is rough against mine, and my entire hand seems to disappear in
his. I almost trip on the curb as he leads me up and towards one of the houses,
because all I can seem to look at is our hands locked together.
“Careful,”
he calls over his shoulder. People greet him as we pass, but he seems to barely
acknowledge them. Within minutes he has us in one of the frat houses. He winds
through the rooms obviously looking for someone.
“Hey,
Trent.” I hear him call. “Hey, my sisters roommate is getting a little
overheated; can I borrow your room for a bit so she can cool down?”
His
statement is met with catcalls and whistles and I know my cheeks turn pink at
the implication. He takes it all in stride, waiting for Trent to answer. I feel
his body jerk as he reaches up to catch the keys that Trent throws at him.
“Thanks man.”
The
whistles start again as we make our way up the stairs, but Cole doesn't even
slow down. He leads me down a hallway until he comes to the last door, which he
uses the key to unlock. “Grab a
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