*FREE WITH PAID BONUS CHAPTER*After being dumped by her boyfriend, Elodie Shepherd resigns herself to loving her older brother's best friend from afar, just like she always has, even though he only sees her as his best friend's immature kid sister.
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Matthew was drunk in his uber.
Shocker.
"Thanks for the ride," I started curtly, keeping my distance in the backseat of the newer shadowy coupe that had pulled right up to the curb outside the studio.
The aroma of vodka, Matthew's choice poison, filtered through the air and got clogged up in my nostrils reminding me of the night that he'd first kissed me in the inky luster of the club's flashing lights.
I avoided peeking at him until I couldn't stand it anymore, rain pelting on the car and fogging up the air around the windows until I could barely glimpse the streetlights lining the blacktop ahead.
His head was bowed, hair darkened by the rain and falling in a thick, messy array in front of his face. His hands were at his sides, carefully drawn and clenched, as if he couldn't bear the fact that we were alone in the back of the car together.
"Thought you were done with fighting."
His tone was biting, caustic, and caused the hair on my arms to stand at attention.
"I'm not fighting, just brushing up on some skills I've lost."
"Didn't Eli make you swear never to go back to that studio again?"
"Eli isn't my keeper. He can't control where I go and what I do anymore than he can dictate what you do."
His jaw clenched, his teeth clacking together as he opened his mouth to say something then promptly shut it back.
Silence followed, the slushing of tires over the rain slick roads the only sound penetrating the soft atmosphere inside the uber. The driver played soft classical music over the stereo system, hopefully drowning out our conversation.
"Why are you going back to doing this shit, anyway? What, your boyfriend dumps you, so you have more free time, is that it?"
I bit back a snorting laugh at Matthew's desire to bring up my single-ness.
"No, but I definitely have more energy to use on other activities, if that's what you're implying."
His full attention was on me after that.
"What had you been using that energy on before, then? Answering his calls and texting him back as soon as he messaged you? Going to the movies?"
"Matthew. What activities do couples normally do together that can take up someone's energy?" I asked suggestively and in a mocking tone. Hopefully, he got the gist.
A flicker of recognition flew across his features before he schooled them into a mask of indifference, forcing a laugh to bubble up in my throat.
"Did you honestly think I was still a..." I leaned forward and cupped my hands dramatically around my mouth before whispering the word, "virgin," and punctuating that statement with a laugh at the end of it.
