Sometimes Moments (Sometimes Moments, #1)(26)

When they arrived at their street, he surprisingly took her hand and led her quietly to the side gate of her house. Her heartbeat sped up at the feel of his touch, but she swallowed hard to ignore the bliss she felt.

Callum let go of her hand the moment they made it to her bedroom window. She leant on the tree and watched as he lifted it up. The brightness of the moon gave her the light needed to see him and the cherry blossoms that fell on the shirt he was wearing.

A girl could only dream of the day when Callum Reid asked her to be his. For Peyton, she wouldn’t be that lucky girl. She’d rather be his friend than nothing at all. It was a sacrifice her heart hated making.

Callum moved the curtains, and she watched as he looked into her room. When he glanced over at Peyton, he gave her a restrained smile.

“It’s clear. Doesn’t look like your parents noticed. The house is quiet,” he stated and leant against the weatherboards of her house.

The worry in his eyes had her frowning. “Callum, does it annoy you that people in town think more of what we actually are?”

He tensed. “Peyton…”

“Are you embarrassed at the thought of kissing me?” she asked, a little hurt.

“No,” he whispered.

Her heart threw itself against her ribcage. Not the answer she had been expecting.

So she pushed off the tree and took a step forward. “Then kiss me.”

He looked at her, surprised. “I don’t think—”

“Prove to me that we’re just friends. What are you afraid of? It’s just a kiss.”

“It’s not, Peyton.”

“It is. What are you so afraid of?” she asked, tilting her head up at him.

He let out a sigh and said, “Of falling further for you than I already am.”

Callum said it so softly that she almost missed it. She looked at him in shock at his confession. Before she could even comment or reply, he grabbed her and crashed his lips onto hers, searing her heart as his for eternity.



Warmth surrounded her. It wasn’t just a sensation that lasted mere seconds; it was prolonging. She snuggled into it and smelt wood burning. Then she opened her eyes to see the glass coffee table of her lounge room in front of her. She bunched her eyebrows at the sight. Not what she had expected to see. Her eyes wandered as she started to slowly remember her last memory before the darkness.

“That damn cat,” she mumbled as she tried to move, a blanket tight around her restricting her attempt to sit up.

“Careful, Peyton. Slowly,” a voice instructed.

She lifted her eyes up from the coffee table to see Callum walking into the room. He checked on the fireplace before he kneeled and set a cup on the table.

“Why are you in my house, Callum?” Peyton asked, groggy.

She pulled her arms from under the blanket and then sat up too quickly. Her head pounded heavily and she placed a hand on her forehead, trying to soothe the ache away.

Callum sat beside her and cradled her cheeks in his hands, steadying her face as he looked over her.

“What are you doing?”

“Making sure that you’re okay. I think you should be fine. Do you need me to take you to a doctor or the local hospital?” Callum dropped his hands from her face and adjusted the blanket to cover her up more.

“I... Uhh, what?” she asked, confused.

“I found you near the gate unconscious in the storm, Peyton. What were you thinking? I found your phone on the bench once I brought you inside. Your last call was to Mads eight hour ago. I found you two hours ago. That means you were unconscious out there for almost six hours. Lucky you had that jacket on.”

“There was a cat,” she explained as she pulled the blanket off her. Then her eyes widened and she quickly covered herself, her cheeks heating instantly. “Umm, care to explain?”

Callum looked down and then back at her, his cheeks turning a rosy red. “Your jeans were soaked, so I had to pull them off you. You were out cold. I tried to wake you, but it was no use. So I, ahh, took the initiative and took your pants off.”

“Wow. Makes me glad that I wear underwear. So when sexual deviants like Callum Reid take off your pants when you’re unconscious, nothing is on show. Please tell me you didn’t do it on my lawn.”

“No, Peyton. I brought you into the house and put you on the couch. I made sure you were okay and had the fire going before I removed your pants,” Callum explained with a slight smirk on his face.

Peyton wrapped the cream blanket around her tighter and stood up from the couch. “I feel very violated right now.” Then she looked down at Callum, the colour in his cheeks fading.

“You’re upset that I took your pants off but you’re not even gonna thank me for bringing you in. Peyton, you were unconscious. What happened to you?”

She let out an irritated huff. “I was trying to get Mrs West’s cat and then I guess I didn’t see the gate swing forward from the wind. You know you could have just left me there. I don’t need saving.”

Callum stood up and looked down at her. “I wasn’t going to leave you out there. Do you really think I could live with myself if I just saw you on the ground and walked away?”

Her heart leapt. That wasn’t something she’d wanted to hear. Her heart wanted to be saved, but she knew Callum Reid wouldn’t save her. If anything, he’d ruin her…further.