Redesigned by Fate

| six

Thankfully, the next drinking game did not involve sharp objects, and Presley was at a safe distance from me. I knew she hadn't meant to hit me with the dart, and after she reminded me what a jerk I'd been, I almost couldn't blame her if she had.

Sometimes I forgot that most women actually remembered things in great detail - especially when they caught you at your worst, which was exactly what I'd been the day I met Presley at the open house.

Whenever Austin said something to piss me off, we just didn't speak for a few hours, and then we forgot about whatever dumb shit went down.

Guess I took for granted that Presley would forget how I'd acted that day. But now that she was my neighbor, I didn't want things to be weird between us. As soon as we finished the game, I'd find a moment to apologize. And then I'd head home because I was exhausted. I'd never admit it to Presley after her comments on my purchase, but renovating a house was no joke.

I wasn't sure how Austin, who'd worked just as hard as I had today, had so much energy. He practically vibrated next to me as we stared down a long folding table with 5 red solo cups placed on each end in a triangle formation. Brie and Presley faced us on the other end. I hadn't played beer pong in a number of years, but thankfully, old habits died hard.

I carried our team to victory after a round-robin-style tournament against Brie and Presley, and some of the other guests. Austin was a useless teammate because he was too focused on looking down Brie's shirt every time she leaned over to throw the ping pong ball. He didn't even try to hide the fact that he was ogling her, but judging by the way she looked at him, she didn't mind.

No surprise there, I mean... she was the reason we were even here in the first place. Oh, and the fact that Austin only thought with his dick.

"The keg is empty," someone shouted from the lawn.

That didn't take long. It was only— holy shit. It was after one in the morning. No wonder I couldn't stop yawning.

"We need to do shots," Presley announced. "I have to forget how terribly we just played. I'm ashamed of myself."

As I watched her stumble over her own feet, I wondered if shots were such a good idea.

"What do your tattoos mean?" Brie asked Austin. His arm was draped around her shoulders as they followed Presley. I watched as Brie inspected Austin's ink-covered skin, rolling my eyes. They'd be in bed together before the clock struck two.

"Tequila, sourpuss, vodka, or fireball?" Presley stood on her tiptoes, her top rising up as she reached into the cabinet over the fridge. I told myself not to look at her exposed stomach but failed. Plus, it wasn't like I hadn't seen it before.

I would never admit it, but I'd often remembered Presley, standing on the dock in just her bra and underwear. As a heterosexual man, I think it'd be weird if I didn't fantasize about someone with a body as hot as hers. Right?

"Fireball," I replied.

"Tequila it is."

I chuckled. "Why did you bother asking then?"

"It was a test. And you failed." She set the tequila bottle down on the counter and then pulled four shot glasses from another cabinet. Glancing around, I realized everyone else had gone home. Austin was telling Brie about the inspiring reason for his calf tattoo as she fawned over him on the large sectional.

"You have a nice place," I said. I'd thought it earlier when Presley was saying goodbye to her friend. "Been thinking of a couch like that for my place, once it's all fixed up."

"How's that going, by the way?" Presley smirked as she handed me a shot. She passed one to Austin and Brie. Taking Brie's lead, the four of us raised our glasses in the air then downed the clear liquid.

My throat burned. It'd been a while since I'd done a shot, let alone tequila. It'd never been my favorite. I preferred beer to anything else.

"It's going great. Thanks for asking."

"I'm sure it is," she taunted, then turned around and went back to the kitchen. "Anyone want another one?"

Brie suddenly leaped up over the side of the couch. She ran over to Presley and whispered something in her ear. They both giggled. I glanced at Austin who had glassy eyes and a shit-eating grin. What the fuck? I mouthed to him, but he just shrugged.

And his grin only widened when Brie returned to him, grabbing his hand and leading him down the hall.

I checked my phone for the time. 1:46 am. Did I call that or what?

But now that it was just me and Presley, I suddenly felt unsure of what I was still doing here. Scratching the back of my neck, I contemplated apologizing to her right then, but worried she may not remember - and I did not want to have to do it twice.

"You want another?" Presley asked, holding the bottle of tequila lazily in one hand, a shot glass in the other.

I shook my head. "I'm good." Tomorrow, I wanted to be somewhat productive, especially since I was pretty sure I wouldn't be getting any help from Austin.

"Party pooper." She downed shot number three.

"You should drink some water," I said when her body swayed and she had to steady herself by placing her hands on the kitchen counter.

"Speaking of water... I'm going swimming."

She wasn't serious, was she?

"Do you think that's the best idea considering your condition?" I asked.

"Sure. You can be my chaperone."

Before I could argue, she was out the back door, running onto the grass, kicking off her shoes before she reached the sand. She was damn fast, too, probably from all the running she did. I could barely keep up.

How did I end up babysitting my drunk neighbor while Austin banged her roommate?

By the time I caught up, she'd already stripped down to her bra and underwear again. For fucks sake.

"Presley, wait," I called, out of breath. Thankfully, she stopped at the edge of the dock, giving me time to reach her. "You should think this through. You've been drinking a lot... it would be dangerous to get in the water."

Her hazy blue eyes flitted between me and the moonlit lake. She lazily tapped one finger to her bottom lip. "Hmm. I'll stay dry... if you apologize and then tell me why you were such a jerk the day we met."

I rubbed my temples and let out a deep breath. It's not that I had an issue with apologizing to her. It was the next part that bothered me. The why.

As Presley's gaze seared into me, I sat down on the edge of the pier and dangled my feet into the cool lake, patting the spot next to me. "Fine."

Presley placed one hand on my shoulder, almost losing her balance as she sat down. I was thankful she wasn't facing me so I wouldn't have to force myself not to look at her half-naked body the entire time I spoke. Lord knows it would be hard to keep my eyes off her, this time in a red matching bra and thong set. It must have been a push-up bra, the way her tits poured out over the cups. Fuck me.

"I'm gonna jump in if you don't start talking," Presley said, a devious smile on her lips. She swayed playfully and bumped her shoulder against mine.

"I am sorry for how I acted the day we met. And I'm not just saying that, either. I was a dick. Ask my assistant, Tanner. He got the brunt of my shitty mood, too." I stared at the water, watching as it rolled gently against my knees.

"Thank you for saying that," Presley turned to catch my eye.

"Yeah, it should've been done sooner. I was going to tell you when you were somewhat sober." I studied her glassy eyes. "Will you even remember this conversation?"

"Of course, I will remember." Presley scoffed as she tried to rest her hands behind her on the dock. Only problem was, one of them missed the wooden surface and she nearly fell into the water. I acted quickly, reaching one arm around her to steady her.

"You were saying." I arched my brow.

"Shut up. You still owe me the other half of the explain.. Explation.. Explanation." She snickered. "Wow, I butchered that word."

I chuckled, though I was really hoping she'd forgotten about that part. Maybe I could just make something up so I wouldn't have to go into detail about Natalie. But my drunk and disorderly neighbor didn't give me much time to think of anything when she began to lower herself into the water.

"Hey!" I placed one hand on her arm to stop her from submerging herself.

She looked over at me with a crooked smile. "I'll give you one more chance."

"You're so infuriating," I mumbled.

She giggled and clumsily pulled herself back onto the dock. I wrapped my fingertips around the rough wood platform. Getting a hundred splinters would probably hurt less than reliving the day Natalie confessed her true feelings to me.

"I was with someone for a while. We'd always talked about getting married one day, having kids, settling down. We bought a house together, and I bought a ring. I thought everything was good," I said.

"Aww. You were a jerk because of a girl?" She asked. When I glanced at her, I found pity reflected in her eyes. I didn't want her pity. I just wanted my life back - the one that made sense.

"I guess I was. She ended things with me after I proposed. That was the night before the open house."

Presley's jaw dropped and she angled herself towards me. "Oh my god. Did she tell you why? You poor thing."

My stomach recoiled at the thought of getting into all that. I'd had about enough of this conversation. And since I had Presley hanging off every word I said, I made a split-second decision - one that was likely influenced by the small amount of alcohol still in my system. Without giving her any time to react, I lifted her over my shoulder and carried her off the dock.

"Hey!! Put me down!" She protested, kicking her short arms and legs. "Callan, I mean it!"

Laughing, I gently dropped her onto the sand, just steps from my back door. "Stay," I ordered.

"I'm not a dog," she whined.

"And I'm not a babysitter, but here we are."

She glared at me, crossing her arms over her chest. I pried my eyes to her face, which was unfortunately equally stunning.

"You shouldn't be rude to me on my birthday," she blurted out, her eyes shooting daggers at me.

"Your birthday?" I was so confused. No one mentioned a birthday.

"Shit. Why did I say that? I'm too tipsy." Presley sighed as she laid back onto the sand, staring up at the sky.

I followed suit, suddenly more curious than ever about my half-dressed neighbor.

"It's not technically my birthday anymore since it's after midnight."

"Happy belated birthday?" I turned slightly, studying her closely. Her expression was mostly blank as she looked at the stars. But I swear there was a hint of something else there, too... sadness, maybe? It was hard to tell given how drunk she was.

"I don't celebrate it anymore. Haven't for two years. But Brie threw me a fake non-birthday, birthday party."

"That's... confusing. Why don't you just celebrate it? What's the problem?" I asked, propping my head up with my elbow.

Presley turned to face me. Her cheeks were flush, her eyes half-open. "You gonna tell me about your ex and why she thinks you're lame?" She smirked.

I knew she was joking, but that didn't mean the comment didn't sting. My jaw flexed as I looked down at the sand, dragging my fingers through the tiny specs.

"I made you mad. Oops." She rolled onto her back. "Just ignore me. I talk too much when I drink. Or I don't talk at all. Or I cry. Really, anything can happen."

She pointed out constellations for a few minutes, ones with names I was positive didn't exist. Then, she went quiet, and I felt my eyes getting heavy. I wanted to go home but was afraid to leave her alone near the lake given her shenanigans a few minutes ago.

I decided I'd just shut my eyes for a moment. What was the worst that could happen? My eyelids drifted closed. I wasn't sure how much time passed before I felt a soft hand on my cheek. My eyes flew open, only to find Presley nearly nose to nose with me.

"What are you—" was all I managed to stay before her lips sealed over mine.

Hi, my lovely readers... I'm back. After making the tough decision to pull my work from Wattpad, I thought it over for the last few weeks and realized that plagiarism is everywhere. It is going to be a hard thing to avoid in the writing industry, unfortunately. So I am going to take this chance so that I can keep my work on Wattpad as I do enjoy the app for the most part. Mostly, I love the reader base I've built here and want to continue writing for you. <3 So thanks for your patience with me if you didn't make the leap over to Inkitt. I am still writing there as well. 

And please, please be vigilant about reporting plagiarism if you find it. That's all we can do to combat it, so it's very important. 

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Love, Elle xx