Chapter 53

Chapter 53

“I knew it!” Twila screamed with excitement.

There was no excitement about any of this. We did the unthinkable last night and it wouldn’t leave my head. The noises, the feelings, everything was amazing. Though we both played with fire. I mean, he’s literally Cyrus’ friend, and we had sex! Captivating, engaging sex! What were we thinking? This wouldn’t end well for any of us.

Still, there has always been this great chemistry between us. It wasn’t explainable, but we clicked. Especially after being open with each other. Sharing our previous experiences it pulled us towards each other. There was this grip that I didn’t want to let go of. Jay meant more to me than I was letting on. Or we just had really great sex that my mind wouldn’t stop thinking about.

Sighing, I face palmed myself. “Can we save the told you so for later? This is a crisis!” I panicked.

“Crisis? You have two of the hottest men madly in love with you.” Bradyn fawned, wishing she could take my place.

I rolled my eyes angrily, eating a muffin. “They’re friends! Best friends at that! I’m a home wrecker, but friendship wise.”

Although it was killing me, I still had no regrets about what we did. Sure, it was not the smartest idea, but my god was it spectacular. The way he had his hands around my neck dishing out commands. I’ve never been so turned on in my life before. He was aggressive, but somehow there was this gentleness beneath it. Jay was completely mysterious in the best of ways. However, it was all very wrong! Yet I want more of him. Was it infatuation or something more?

Twila sat next to me, resting her hand on my shoulder. “Calm down, Autumn. You act like you’re taken or something.” She reassured me.

“Aren’t I though? We’ve been seeing each other for weeks now.” Nothing made sense anymore.

“Did he formally ask you out?” Bradyn asked.

I crossed my arms. “Well, no, but-”

“Then you’re single.” She had a point.

It wasn’t enough for me, though. “It’s his friend. How is that ok even if I’m technically single?”

“That is a them problem, not your problem.” Twila agreed with Bradyn of course.

The crucial factor was that they were friends. I did it with two best friends and one of them was going to hate the other. It also didn’t help that Jay said little to me the next day. After we woke up, he acted as if nothing happened. Leaving me confused on whether he did it just to get another one for his books. There were condoms tucked away in his drawer. I did not know how many women he’s been with but I’m sure it was a hefty number. Just thinking about it bothered me.

Unfortunately, there was no more time to talk about it as the other girls came in. Farah tailing right behind them. She was here to announce our last challenge, as next week would be the final decision. It was crazy to think that my time in Sunbury was almost ending. I’ve made some fond memories here. Others, well, let’s just say they were less than stellar. Regardless, I was going to miss this place dearly.

Farah did her usual routine for morning announcements, looking perkier than ever. “Ladies, it pains me to say it, but this week is your last official challenge.” She spoke. “Although it’s not much of challenge and more of a farewell dinner but at our beach house in Santa Fay.”

Santa Fay? That was one of the most exclusive beaches in the world. Only the richest of the rich could get on that beach and the Hadids were a part of that one percent. I couldn’t wait to see the glistening white sand and the beautiful turquoise water. Cyrus and I were going to have a great time together. Hopefully, there was time to sneak around between the dinner and with everyone being there. I’m sure he would make time for me. He always does.

“We’ll be leaving Thursday so you guys can enjoy Santa Fay throughout the weekend.” She explained, getting everyone excited.

It was hard for me to get excited with so much on my mind. Santa Fay sounded lovely, and I knew it’ll be great. I was worried about seeing Cyrus and spending time alone with him. What was I going to say? If he wanted to talk about Jay, there was no way I wouldn’t crack. At the same time, there was no clear sign of what Jay’s intentions were. Did he just want to fuck, or did he want more? And why did he act like nothing happened? Everything was stressing me out.

Things got even more stressful when Jenna walked up to me. We haven’t had a conversation since she followed us to the gazebo. I did not know what she wanted from me now, but it was never anything good. I’m convinced the girl doesn’t have a good bone in her body. She was one person you couldn’t get a clear read on, but I was ready to indulge her.

Farah left, promoting Jenna to come over to me. She was probably going to say some snide remark like she always did. It was pretty standard at this point. The girl couldn’t go a week without insulting me. It was something her body craved for. Can we say psycho?

“You know what I’m going to ask you, right?” She was oddly calm.

I rolled my eyes, not wanting to talk to her. “Let’s get this over with.” I say, annoyed already.

We stepped into the hallway away from the other girls as they chatted about Santa Fay. Whatever Jenna wanted to talk about this time, she better make it quick. Today was not the day to be arguing with her.

“Whatever it is you’re going to say, I don’t feel like arguing, Jenna.” I say before she gets a word out.

She chuckled, shaking her head at me. “I’m not here to argue. I actually came to apologize to you.”

My heart dropped. Did Jenna just say she wanted to apologize to me? There’s no way she of all people wanted to apologize. It wasn’t in her nature to be kind. That was a foreign concept to her. Why would she suddenly want to be nice to me? Something smelt fishy but I was in no mood to dig into it.

Instead, I heard her out. Maybe she was actually being sincere, and we could put all the petty drama behind us. That would be one thing off my shoulders before leaving this place.

“I realize that I’ve been a bit of a bitch and want to let bygones be bygones.” She stuck her hand out to me.

I hesitated on shaking it but thought, what the hell? There was nothing I had to lose at this point. There was only one more week left and the fact that we were going away again was big. All of us on the same page would make for this trip to be out of this world. At least I was hoping for that outcome.

Shaking her hand, I slightly smiled, still not keen on trusting her. “I guess I’m sorry too. I was also pretty rude.”

Nodding, Jenna actually smiled back at me, which felt strange. “Great, see you around then.” She waved before walking away.

That was confusion.

*********

Later in the day, Cyrus and I went to Jay’s again. My stomach was turning, having to see him again. It was turning even more knowing I was seeing him with Cyrus around. This was going to be so awkward, especially with them both in front of me. Knowing what happened between me with them made it all the more difficult. Cyrus is still clueless to the whole debacle. The way his eyes looked at me made me feel all the more guilty. But he was so cute that when you look at him, other thoughts melt away.

Glancing at me, Cyrus laughed, putting his eyes back on the road. Even his laugh was cute. Everything this man did melted my heart and here I was breaking his. No doubt I was a horrible person.

“Sneaking looks at me, I see.” He smirked as we pulled into Jay’s driveway.

I didn’t want to go in yet, so I stalled him out here a bit.

“What can I say? You’re very pleasing to the eye.” I look up at him, smiling.

Though Cyrus was always so good at telling when things were on my mind. Almost too good. This time, he wouldn’t like to hear what I was thinking about. He’d be angry and who knows what he would say to me? That’s why I lied instead. Ever since Jay told me I’ve been curious, so it wasn’t a complete lie. Just a stretched truth.

“Care to tell me what’s troubling you?” His hand grabbed mine, squeezing it gently.

I fiddled with his fingers, not sure I was ready for his answer. “Don’t get mad at him, but Jay told me about the girl you were obsessed with before me.”

His face looked like he was angry, but he laughed. “Ok, obsessed is an overstatement.” At least he didn’t deny it. “But I may have left out those details.”

He baffles me with his honesty. I wish I could be more like him and tell him what I was actually thinking. It was nice knowing from him what really happened. At least getting his perspective on what happened. It’ll help me gage how to deal with the mess I created with Jay. Their past situation ended well. Although Jay did nothing with her like he did with me. Is there any women not attracted to Jay though? It has to be hard being his friend.

Sighing, he raked his fingers through his hair before explaining to me the details.

“Kameron Blake.” Her name came out of his mouth and I nearly choked on my spit.

“Are you kidding? You mean THE Kameron Blake?” My eyes wanted to pop out of socket.

Kameron Blake was the hottest super model slash actress in the world right now. To think she came from Sunbury, of course. But it was crazy to me that this was the girl he obsessed over. It wasn’t surprising by any means. The girl was complete eye candy and in her interviews she seems really sweet. She was tall with a delicate figure and your typical blonde bombshell. Damn, him being attracted to me means he’s really lowered his standards. How she didn’t seduce Jay is beyond me. She could probably even seduce me if she swung that way.

With a roll of his eyes, Cyrus didn’t seem too impressed. “Yes, I know score! Blah, blah, blah.” Yeah, it did not impress him. “But she really isn’t anything like she portrays. I mean, Jay told you what happened. She wanted to fuck him behind my back.”

Him saying that made me sulk. She wanted to fuck him, but I actually did. Literally right in the house we were about to go into. Kameron may have crushed his spirits, but I was going to crush his world. That was the last thing he expected of me. As much as I reassured him, I wouldn’t do anything like that. He’d have full trust in me and I blew it. But Jay. Fucking Jay. I don’t know what it is about that man.

“At least she didn’t, right?” I pause, watching for his reaction.

He shrugged. “I guess so, but that’s a thing of the past.” He smiled at me. “Now I look forward to a grand future.”

The smile on his face pained me to see as he stared deep into my eyes. I was the future he was desperately looking forward to. Little did he know I might be at his demise. Nothing changed the fact that I had potent feelings for Cyrus, though. Our date was a mess, but the time we spent together was always magical. Even now, sitting in his car is perfect for me. It’s just now I spread my feelings to another person. Frankly, more than I will admit.

Leaving a light kiss on my lips, Cyrus squeezed my hand once more before unlocking the car doors.

“Alright, let’s get in here before Jay asks questions.” He loathed.

I giggled, following his lead. “Yeah, that’s probably best.”