Despicable Desires

Episode 41

Adeline

"Honestly, it's okay," I said as I entered the apartment after Holly. "He was pleasant."

"Just pleasant?" she asked as she set her bag down in the hall and took off her shoes. It was after eleven, and she had just returned from the library. Only ten days had passed since we returned to classes, and she already had a multitude of presentations to prepare. She looked discouraged when I met her outside the building, but when she saw me, a broad smile split her lips. I had just returned from a date, and she was eagerly waiting for me to tell her about my evening.

"Not very conclusive."

"But at least it got me out of the house and gave me something else to think about for a moment."

"Yeah, he bought me a drink and then we went for a walk around town," I replied.

"How romantic," she giggled.

When we reached the living room, Esther stood up in a hurry, looking completely panicked. She looked at each of us, then cast a worried glance down the hall that led to the bedrooms.

"Are you okay, girl?" Holly asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

I held my bag in one hand and made my way to the door of my room to drop it off, keeping an ear out for the girls' conversation.

"Adeline, don't get mad," Esther said. Both girls followed me, and Esther became increasingly panicked as I prepared to open my door.

"What do you mean?" I asked, the sentence dying on my lips as my eyes met the silhouette at my desk.

"He insisted on coming in," my roommate confided in a rueful voice.

I can't hear anything but my heart pounding, and I'm completely caught up in the gaze I've plunged headlong into. Jayden is motionless, his hands in the pockets of his jeans and his hair looking like it's been through a war. He seems dejected. And he's gorgeous.

I swallow, feeling the presence behind me disappear, and find myself alone with the guy who broke my heart.

"What are you doing here?" I blurt out as I fully enter my room.

Ignoring the trembling in my legs, I set my bag down at the foot of my bed, ignoring the gaze fixed on me. I feel as if my whole body is aware of his presence. He fills the room with his scent, and it's going to be hard not to imagine him here.

"I had to talk to you," his broken voice ends, making me faint, but I hold on and turn to face him.

Let's get straight to the point.

"I don't want to talk to you, Jayden. You shouldn't be here."

"I know," he sighs, running a hand through his disheveled hair.

"I don't want to see you."

He immediately moves closer to me, invading my personal space with a snap of his fingers. His imposing chest faces me, and I struggle to remain impassive.

If I ever was.

"At least listen to what I have to say," he pleads with me.

I lift my head toward him, twisting my neck to reduce the distance his height imposes.

He looks devastated.

And it feels good.

"You have five minutes," I say, moving away from him. I lean against my desk where he was a few seconds ago. He is standing in the middle of my room, arms hanging, mouth pinched.