A Kiss Like This (Kiss and Make Up #3)(69)

Shit. Sweet Abby is kind of scary.

And if she weren’t gearing up to chew my ass out, I’d applaud her for sticking up for herself.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“Clearly not.” She stalks over to the chair where she stacked her clothes and begins angrily pulling on her jeans, one leg at a time, and muttering under her breath. She flops down, pulling on her shoes and zipping them both up the side. “Stupid little virgin. Way to fall for the big, angry, lying jockstrap.”

My hands shake as I hold them out, imploring. I am way out of my league with this one. “Have I ever been anything but honest with you?”

She stands up and shoves the ring right in my face. “Gee, I guess not!”

“Be fair. Everything I’ve ever said has been honest.”

She rolls her eyes. “Oh brother. Like that’s real hard—you scarcely ever talk, Caleb!”

“Come on, stop. Please, I tried. Don’t be pissed at me.” I shake my head and run both hands through my hair, frustrated. I don’t miss Abby’s eyes flicker to the waistband of my loosening towel with a guilty spark, and she gulps before jerking away.

“How do I know I can trust you with my heart if I can’t trust you with my possessions? Or my privacy? Is this all just a big joke to you?”

A joke? Okay, now I’m getting pissed. “What the f*ck is that supposed to mean? It’s a goddamn ring, for Christ’s sake. It’s not like I f*cking cheated on you. Chill the f*ck out.”

Okay, so that particular choice of words might have been a mistake, because her face gets so red that her bright blue eyes look aquamarine. They’re sexy and erotic and unnerving and all kinds of f*cked up—especially when narrowed into slits and fixated on me.

She levels me with a stare, hurriedly gathering up her folded shirt from last night. “Okay. Fine. I’ll chill the f*ck out if you can tell me why you didn’t tell me about the ring.”

She irritably screws the ring onto the middle finger of her right hand.

I proceed cautiously, knowing from watching my dad argue with my mom that there’s little reasoning with a woman who’s hell bent on being pissed. I keep my voice steady. “I just… forgot. And that’s the truth. I swear.”

“You forgot,” she says flatly. “Even after I brought it up, multiple times?”

Oh boy.

She sounds like a prosecutor cross-examining a witness, and I know that I’m losing her but am ill-equipped to stop it.

“Wait. Who’s the pre-law major, here?” I try joking with her to lighten the mood…

…and judging by the disgusted look marring her pretty face, it’s an epic fail.

“That’s all you have to say?”

“I don’t know what to tell you. I’m sorry.” I shrug helplessly. “Is this about the guys walking in on us? Seriously, what are you really upset about?”

“No. Yes! This whole thing is freaking me out, Caleb! Cubby saw my… my… boobs!” She opens and closes her mouth a few times, but nothing comes out. Then, “That was mortifying for me. Absolutely mortifying. Words cannot describe. And do you want to know something else? I don’t think your roommates have any respect for you. If they did, they wouldn’t have barged in here.”

Huh? “I know you’re upset—”

“My boobs, Caleb. He saw. My. Boobs. No one but you has ever seen them before!”

Feeling cornered, I shout, “I said I was sorry! What the f*ck more do you want?”

“I want him to un-see my body! That’s what I want! And I want you to have been honest and given me my ring! That’s what I want!”

How did this escalate so quickly? “Wait,” I ask slowly. “Are you mad that my friends saw your boobs… or that I had your ring?”

I know it’s lame, but I really need her to be clear on this. But instead of responding, she stares at me like I’ve lost my damn mind. Like I’m an idiot. Like I don’t get it.

“Caleb, maybe we’re not cut out for a relationship.” Her hands flutter, gesturing around the room. “Maybe this whole thing is a mistake.”

I don’t even know what to say to that, so I say nothing.

Abby inhales a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I’m just so… Maybe we wouldn’t even be having this conversation if those jerks hadn’t charged into the room and humiliated me. But they did, and—” she pauses. “I’ll probably regret saying this, but I c-can’t do this right now. Not when I’m still embarrassed.”

I run a hand through my hair, tugging it in frustration.

Mind made up, Abby stalks to the door, turning to face me as she yanks at the doorknob. She pauses as tears well up in her bright, expressive eyes. She wipes them away with a quick flick of her finger and lifts her chin a notch.

“And I-I’m keeping this shirt, *.”

And with a flounce, my favorite shirt and my would-be future girlfriend slam out the door.





CHAPTER 27

Abby

“Hey, Abby, wait up.”

At the sound of my name, I turn to see Tyler jogging briskly toward me, across the lawn of the Kappa house, in a wrinkled cut-off tee shirt and basketball shorts. His brown hair hangs in his eyes, and he’s barefoot.