VANGUARD(11)

“Hi,” she said with a hiccupping giggle. He turned around, grinning. “Wanna go for a walk?” They slipped out into the alley behind the restaurant in the fall night, and things began to happen very quickly.

The minute they were alone, Michael leaned back against the restaurant’s brick wall and pulled her up against him. His mouth opened against Sophie’s, their tongues wrapping around one another. She plunged her hands into his silky black curls, dragging her fingers through them the way she’d wanted to since they’d met. And especially since she’d seen Mirielle touching his hair on the bus.

He moaned deep in his throat, sending her nerves into overdrive. Suddenly she couldn’t get enough of him, pressing closer to her warm body. Michael’s hands slid down to Sophie’s hips and pulled her tight against his body. She could feel him grow rigid in his jeans.

Sophie might have been one of the most gifted students in the state of California, but she had limited sexual experience. Reason and intellect would normally tell her this was a poor choice. But reason and intellect had deserted both of them, and she would do anything to have this man. Michael gasped as she pushed her hips against him, and, encouraged, he cupped her breasts.

“Sophie,” he whispered after several intense moments. “I want you so bad. Right here, right now. I need you.” He pulled open her jeans, and slipped his hand into her underwear. She held her breath as his cold fingers found their way between her thighs. “Oh, mana mila, you need me too, don’t you? I can tell.” He touched her lightly, never losing contact with the spots that felt the best. Between the Orlisian endearment – one she’d never expected to hear from him – and the overwhelming sexual stimulation, Sophie mind went into overdrive. The pressure in her abdomen started to build.

Abruptly, someone grabbed her from behind and yanked her away. She gasped in fright. A low voice said, “Do up your pants.” Then the person rounded on Michael.

It was Carter.

“Have you lost your mind?” he whispered furiously. “The whole room saw you come out here, including staff. How long do you think before they come to investigate?” Michael lounged against the restaurant wall, flushed and smirking. Sophie struggled to do up her jeans, letting out a small shriek of horror when Carter slapped Michael across the face.

“You’re a pig, Nariovsky,” he said. “She’s had too much to drink and she’s just a kid. She deserves better than a quick f*ck against a wall.” Michael’s face went from fury to shame as Carter spoke. His glance flickered to Sophie, then Carter shoved him toward the restaurant. “Get out of here.”

Once Michael vanished, she turned on Carter. “I can’t believe you did that! You had no right …”

He gently covered her mouth with his big hand. “Stop. Before you say another word, answer me. Did he force you? Because if he forced you, I’ll kill him.”

Sophie pushed his hand away. “No! It just came over us … it happened so fast. He wasn’t hurting me, Carter, honest.”

“Then I’m sorry,” he said. “But I won’t see you taken advantage of by anyone, even my best friend.” Sophie stared at him. “Now take my arm and smile. Everyone will think the three of us came out here together to smoke or talk. You and Michael stay away from one another for the rest of the night. Maybe the rest of the year.”





-





The next day, Sophie had a headache and a guilty conscience for deceiving her boyfriend. She blamed the wine, but deep inside she knew she was lying to herself, had been lying to herself for some time. The attraction between them was out in the open, and she had no idea how to undo it.

Michael seemed uncomfortable about the whole thing, refusing to speak of the incident and acting uncharacteristically awkward in her presence through Germany and into Scandinavia. Sophie felt stung and confused. As they travelled into Finland, she got her answer.

On an early travel day in in December, Sophie turned in her seat to answer a shouted question from the back in the coach. She couldn’t miss seeing Michael and Mirielle Desmarais sloppily kissing one another a few rows back. Sophie turned around without answering the question. Beside her, Ana looked back to see what had happened.

“Didn’t you know?” she whispered. “They’ve been together since Morocco.” That hit Sophie even harder. Morocco had been weeks ago, before Barcelona. Humiliated, she shrank down in her seat in numb silence, wrapped in her friend’s arms.