Distraction (Westbrook Series Book 1) (7 page)

"Me neither," I whisper. He gently pulls my head up so our lips lightly graze each other one last time. I want more, but I have a feeling I will always want more with Sam.

"Good night, Laila Patterson. And to be very clear, you are
not
my little sis." He gradually pulls away, and backs slowly into the guest room, as if he doesn't want to stop looking at me.

I am standing here, like an idiot, for way too long after he shuts the door. I finally close my bedroom door softly behind me.  I slide my back down until my legs are tucked under my arms on the floor. I rest my chin on my knees, and think more about what had just happened. I'm absolutely stunned. I feel as if my body is floating. The weightlessness is so overwhelming; it's like my body is filled with helium, and nothing could ever pull me back down.

Chapter Eight:
The Never-Ending Brunch
 

I don't sleep very much. Just knowing that Sam is sleeping in the room next to me is enough to keep my mind awake and racing with an endless stream of thoughts and questions.
Where do we go from here?
Are we a real couple now?
What is Kyle going to think
?
What will my parents say
? I'm not sure I'm ready for my family to know. For now, I just want to keep Sam all to myself, without having to deal with everyone else’s reactions.

The questions keep flowing through my mind.
How is this supposed to work when he goes back to school? Is he going back to campus with Kyle for the whole summer, or is he going home to Portland?

Here I am again, letting my mind drift to unknown territories. I have no idea if Sam even sees this beyond tonight or even this weekend. He said I was special, but how many times have I heard about guys saying things like that, to make girls do things with them that they otherwise wouldn't? If he were really like that, would he have left me standing at my bedroom door last night?

I'm not even a hundred percent sure I would have had enough will power to stop him, had he tried to do more. No, I'm pretty sure I would have let him pull me into that guest room, to live out every part of my forbidden fantasy. I'm glad that he didn't though, because I know I'm not ready for that.

As I smooth my comforter over my bed, and carefully place my throw pillows on it, I wonder about what Avery will think. For a brief moment, I completely forget that she already knows. When I recall the look on her face after she saw us together, I laugh to myself as I fall back onto my freshly made bed. She is going to give me so much trouble, especially since I lectured her about what a bad idea it would be for us to date college boys.

I'm anxious to talk to her and see what she thinks, but it's still pretty early. I did promise I'd call her today. After all, I'm sure she is dying to know what is going on. Surely, this is important enough to justify an early morning call.

I dig my iPhone out of my purse, chastising myself for forgetting to charge it. There is only about four percent of juice left. I plug it into my charger and slide the bar with my thumb to unlock it. Apparently, I have missed five text messages between last night and this morning. The first two texts are from Avery.

Avery Brooks: OMG! You and Sam???!!! It took everything in me not to jump up and down and start screaming when I saw his gorgeous arms wrapped around you! :)

This makes me laugh. It's true. Avery doesn't usually hold back, but I am so grateful she chose to spare me further humiliation last night. She didn't think much about embarrassing me in front of Trevor earlier in the evening, but I've decided to let that go, since she had enough good sense not to do it to me in front of Sam.

Avery Brooks: So, when did this happen? Did he kiss you? Was it good? Why am I even asking? It's Sam Woodson! Of course it was good!!! This is so exciting! I can't wait to hear all about it!!! You better call me the minute you wake up! I want deets!!!! OMG! So happy for you! Xoxo :)

I laugh.
She is seriously going to break the exclamation point button on her phone
. The third text is from Allie from last night.

Allie Summers: OMG- Great party! Everyone had a blast. You definitely need to have more parties this summer. BTW- what's up with you and Devon? He seemed really pissed about something and then he just left without saying goodbye to anyone. Call me. Night. XO :)

The fourth text is also from last night, but I don't recognize the number.

(267) 317-8807: Hey, it's Trevor Maddox. I just wanted to make sure you are ok?

My stomach churns when I see his name.
Why wouldn't I be okay?
Does he think Sam is some sort of creep
?
How did he even get my number
?

The last text is also from him, but it is from early this morning. I wonder if he always gets up so early in the morning when there is no school.  I am definitely not a morning person. On the bright side, I doubt he stayed up half the night making out with Avery, if he was up early texting me. This thought makes me smile a little, but I'm not sure why.

Why do I hate the idea of them dating so much?
It's not like I don't have Sam.
Wait, do I really have Sam?
He said last night that he wants to take me out on a real date, but he never said when. We didn't talk about how we would break the news to Kyle or my parents. I still have so many questions.

I scroll down to read Trevor’s second text, which I had patiently ignored while reading the first one. Sometimes, it is hard not to skip ahead and read them out of order.

(267) 317-8807: Hey, it's me again. I just wanted to thank you for introducing me to all of your friends. I had a really good time. Let's hang out again soon, ok? Talk to you later. :)
T

I smile when I see the letter T next to his smiley face.

Me: Hi. Sorry I didn't see your text until now. I'm fine. You do not need to worry about Sam. I've known him forever and he's a great guy. Glad to hear you had fun. I think my friends really like you.

I start to type
I like you
, but I quickly delete it before sending it.
Thank God
.

Me: BTW- I'm glad you are back in town and I'm up for hanging out, too. Just say when. :)

I hit send and immediately regret it.
Did that sound desperate
? I re-read my text and groan. It sounds like I am waiting by the phone for him to ask me out, as if I will clear my whole schedule for him, the moment he is ready.
Ugh
. Texting is supposed to shield you from verbal diarrhea, but not when your fingers are faster than your brain.

I re-read his texts again, trying to apply more meaning than is probably there. Once again, I am completely baffled by Trevor Maddox. The more I learn about him, the more I like him. This both excites and terrifies me.

Maybe, we can become good friends?
I don't have any close guy friends, but I feel so at ease with Trevor. It's almost like we've known each other our whole lives. In a way, we have, because our parents have been good friends for so long. Then again, if you let three years go by without exchanging a single letter, text, email, or phone call, you can hardly consider yourselves friends.

I think about he and Avery driving home together last night, and wonder what the deal is with them. I know it's still early, but it doesn't stop me from calling her to find out.

"Hello?" Her voice is groggy.  She sounds a little bit annoyed.
Yep. I definitely woke her up
.
Somebody needs to, or she'll sleep till noon
. She's even less of a morning person than me.

"Good morning, sunshine," I say cheerfully.

"Is it really morning already?" I can almost see her squinting her eyes dramatically.

"Yes, it is, and it looks like we are going to have another gorgeous, sunny day in Brookville." My cheeks are almost hurting; I'm smiling so much.

"Laila, you sound like the stupid weather man. Do I need to remind you that ninety-eight degree weather is not gorgeous? It's too effing hot to even breathe properly." She sighs. "Speaking of hotness, holy hell on wheels, you have got to dish. What is going on with you and Sam? I thought you were hitting it off with Devon.  Then, before I know it, he's history, and your body is wrapped under Sam's seriously hot,
Abercrombie
arms."

I giggle a little at Avery's Abercrombie
reference. I tell her how Devon wasn't really doing it for me, and how I even tried to get him away, just to see if Sam was the reason I was distracted. I decide to leave out the part about Trevor interrupting us, right as Devon was about to kiss me. I still don't know what is going on between her and Trevor. I don't want to confuse things for her, if she really does like him.

I tell her everything about last night, from our almost kiss in my brother's room, to how Sam got jealous of Devon. Then, I tell her about when we really did kiss, and how completely amazing it was.

"I knew he'd be a good kisser. I mean, not that I wanted to find out for myself. I mean I knew
you'd
like it. You know what I mean." Hearing Avery stammer over her words makes me chuckle. She is usually so smooth, while I am the one with my foot in my mouth.

"So, what now?" she asks.

"I don't know. I guess we go out on a date? I'm not sure how long he'll be in town. Kyle has to go back to school on Monday. He's taking a few summer classes. I'm guessing Sam is, too. Otherwise, he'd be home with his parents in Portland." The thought of him going back to school makes my stomach ache.

"Well, it sounds like you guys need to have a talk, so you can figure things out. I would wait until your date, or even after your date, before you bring it up again, though. You don't want to assume it will work out, based solely on how hot and heavy it was last night."

"Hot and heavy? Really Avery? You act like it's the 1950s or something."

She laughs at my response. "So what? I have a little old-school in me. It just makes me more interesting, don't ya think?"

I shake my head, knowing she is probably winking right now.
Avery really is quite a character
.

"So, did you give Trevor Maddox my number?" I ask with a bit more accusation in my tone than I had planned on having.

"Yeah. Why? Was I not supposed to do that? I thought your parents were good friends?"

"No, I just got a text from him, and was wondering how he got my number, is all."

"When did he text you?"

"This morning. It was to thank me, for introducing him to all my friends last night. It was really early, like crazy early." I purposely do not tell her about his text from last night. There is no need to go there, especially since I don't really understand the meaning behind it, myself.

"Yeah. He told me he runs every morning and that it's better if he does it really early, before it gets too hot."

Thank you, Avery.
I am now imagining Trevor shirtless and all sweaty, running in nothing but a pair of jogging shorts. This stirs something in my belly as my face heats up.
What is wrong with me? Why am I thinking about my best friend's man in this way? Wait a minute. Is he my best friend's man or not?
I need to find out what the deal is.

"So . . . ." I draw out the o dramatically, the same way Avery often does.

"So, what?" she asks innocently. She is probably batting her eyelashes.

"So, you two were a little chummy last night."

"Oh, we were just hanging out."

"Hmmmm," I say. I am of course fishing for more, but she seems hell-bent on keeping me in the dark.

After a moment of silence, she finally sighs dramatically before responding. "Trevor's cool." She says this casually, as if it means nothing.

I am not satisfied, so I push her for more. Finally, she admits that she "
might
have a small crush on him,
"
and "
Hello
, have you looked at him?" I am not convinced it is as casual as she is pretending it is. However, after several unsuccessful attempts to get her to reveal more, I finally decide to let it go. After all, I am her best friend. She'll tell me when she's ready.

After getting off the phone, I shoot Allie a quick text, but I don't tell her about Sam. I just explain to her that I don't think Devon and I would work well as a couple. Hopefully, Avery knows to keep a lid on it for now
. Then again, this is Avery we are talking about
. I'd better text her too
,
just to make sure she doesn't accidentally spill the beans to half our school. The last thing I need right now, is for my brother to find out about Sam and me from someone else.

I squeeze in a quick shower, and even put on some makeup before going downstairs. Normally, I would stumble down there with my out-of-control, frizzy hair all over the place, wearing no makeup, and with my crumpled pajamas still on. I want to look good for Sam, though. I notice the guest bedroom door is open, which makes my heart flutter anxiously.

The aroma of bacon and coffee hits me, as I bounce happily down each step.

Mom is flipping pancakes while Kyle sets the table. "Good morning, sweetie. How was the party?" she asks me.

"Fun. Thanks again for letting my friends come over," I say casually.

"Of course. Thanks for cleaning everything up. That sure was nice of Sam to help you," she says while flashing me an approving smile. I can't help but wonder if she would still be so keen on Sam if she knew what else he was doing.