Chapter 15
Gage
She was drawing me in like a moth to a f*****g flame. The way she chuckled, the way she smiled- like she didn’t even mean to, like it slipped out despite herself. It was breathtaking. So goddamn f*****g gorgeous it hurt to look at her and not touch her.
I
And I needed more. I needed everything. Which was why I was waiting just beyond the trees, hidden where the firelight couldn’t reach, praying to God she would follow me. That she’d make the choice to come in here and give me what I wanted most-time. Just a few minutes alone with her. No distractions. No one else but us.
We’d been around each other more, cooking in that tiny, half-broken kitchen-laughing over burst chicken and pasta that could barely stick to the wall. She’d even started running faster in the mornings. Not my pace yet, but fast enough that I could slow down without drawing attention. Fast enough that I could keep her beside me.
But still… she never sought me out. Never said yes to eating together. Never lingered when class ended. It was killing me slowly. Like a knife twisting, deeper every damn day.
I wasn’t used to this. I’d never had to chase someone. Attention usually came to me easy-too easy. Flirty glances. Giggling girls. Half-dressed camp counselors who knew exactly what they wanted. I never had to beg. I never had to wait.
But for Bree? I’d wait forever if she asked me to.
God, it pissed me off how different it felt with her. How she talked to Caleb like it was nothing, like they were just friends catching up. Maybe it was the dance thing. Maybe it was the stupid age gap -that she thought I was just a senior looking for a camp fling, and not someone who actually gave a damn. Not someone who couldn’t stop thinking about her.
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I was halfway to cursing under my breath when I heard it-light footsteps crunching twigs and dry leaves, careful and cautious, but getting closer. My whole body reacted like she’d flipped a switch. Stomach coiling. Hands sweating. Jaw clenching with nerves I didn’t even know I had.
She was here.
Her feet carried her slowly between the trees, eyes darting around, searching. She looked uncertain, cautious-but god, she was so damn adorable. That soft hoodie, those wild strands of hair, slipping out of her ponytail, coming around her face, the way her lips were parted just slightly like she was nervous about getting caught.
She looked like she was doing something wrong. Like she knew she was being bad.
Of course, in my head… she always was.
1/4
At night, laying in the top bunk, I couldn’t stop imagining her. Not just the innocent, sweet Bree I
saw every day-but the Bree I hadn’t met yet. The one who let go. The one who pushed
boundaries. The one who might touch me like she needed me. The one who wouldn’t hold back.
I couldn’t stop thinking about how she’d change once she finally let me in-how her shy little smiles might turn into smirks, how her soft gasps might turn into whimpers. I imagined her eyes darkened with need. Her hands pulling me closer.
I wanted all of her. Every side.
I grinned as I stepped out from behind the tree, reaching for her before she could even gasp. My fingers curled around her forearm and I yanked, gently but firmly, until she stumbled forward.
A soft squeal left her lips as I pressed her back against the nearest tree. Her breath caught, her
chest rising and falling as she looked up, wide-eyed and gorgeous, back pressed into the bark. My hand braced above her head, boxing her in.
“You couldn’t resist, huh?” I asked, laying it on thick, my voice low and cocky as I leaned closer.
She blinked up at me, startled for just a second-until she saw it was me. Then the confusion
melted, and something else flickered in those blue eyes. Heat. Fire. That fight I craved.
And then?
She hit me.
Her fist landed against my chest. Not hard. Not even enough to sting. Just enough to make her
point. Frustration. Nerves. The leftover fear of being grabbed in the dark. All of it, thrown into that
tiny punch.
“Stupid football player,” she huffed. “Trying to scare the living s**t out of me.”
The grin that spread across my face was pure instinct. “By the way you were sneaking in here, figured you were the one trying to scare me,” I teased, loving the flushed look creeping up her neck.
“I wasn’t trying to scare you,” she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest. Her body shifted
against the tree, curling into herself a little. “I just… wasn’t sure if you actually wanted me to follow
you.”
My heart f*****g clenched. God, I wanted to kiss her. Right there. Right then. I wanted to show her
just how badly I wanted her here. I wanted to see if she’d push me away… or if she’d pull me in
instead. Because if she did? I wouldn’t be able to stop.
“I always want you to follow me, Bree,” I answered, my voice low and steady as my eyes traced
every inch of her face. Every damn inch of her beauty.
“You do?” she asked, her voice breathless as her eyes lifted to mine. There was a question in them
-huge and terrified-like she couldn’t believe I meant it. Like she was waiting for me to take it
2/4
“Always,” I whispered again, my tone softer now, reinforcing every word that had just left my lips. No hesitation. No joke. No teasing smirk to soften the truth. Just raw, honest need.
Because yeah, I wanted her with me. Always. I wanted to see her every second I could. Even in the classes we didn’t share, I found myself searching for her. Imagining her in the stands during practice, her eyes following me as I ran plays. I wanted her there, cheering for me when I scored, watching me when I tackled someone straight to the ground. I wanted her to see me, to choose me. Again and again.
She looked down, her cheeks flushed deep pink as heat spread across her face. She always blushed like that-like something innocent and secret had just bloomed inside her. She looked like temptation wrapped in vulnerability, sweet and savory all at once.
God, I couldn’t stop wondering what she’d taste like. Would she be soft like peaches? Sweet like honey? Or would she surprise me-bite back and leave me reeling?
“Why?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, the words slipping out like they betrayed her.
“Why do I want you following me?” I asked, stepping in closer, watching her every move as she gave me a shy little nod. “Because I feel f*****g amazing every time
you do.”
She looked up then, eyes locking onto mine, searching for something. Doubt. A lie. Some kind of red flag. I stood still, letting her see it-everything. The frustration. The hunger. The sincerity. Letting her look until she found what she needed to believe me.
But then-just like that-something shifted. Her gaze hardened. She rolled her eyes, huffing out a breath and shaking her head like she couldn’t even believe herself.
“You don’t even know me,” she muttered, barely loud enough to hear. Then she pushed past me, slipping out from under my arm and walking away, back toward the trail like she hadn’t just set me on fire and left me burning.
I didn’t hesitate. I followed her, footsteps crunching against the forest floor, closing the distance
between us. “Then tell me,” I said, my voice rougher now. “Tell me who Bree is.”
Her laugh was sharp, bitter. She didn’t even look back. “You won’t like what you hear, Gage,” she said, still walking fast, arms wrapped tightly around herself like she was trying to hold the pieces together. “It won’t make this…”-she gestured between us without turning-“make any more sense.”
I slowed down, stopped, letting her take a few steps ahead. My brows furrowed, heart thudding in my chest as I watched her keep moving, her back to me like she couldn’t bear to look.
“Shouldn’t that be up to me?” I asked, my hands lifting helplessly at my sides. “Or us, at least?”
She stopped then, briefly, her shoulders tense. But she didn’t turn. Just stood there, arms still
3/4
More Hewards?
crossed tightly, like the weight of her past was pressing down on her again.
“I’ve done this before, Gage,” she said, her voice flat. “I’ve done the whole popular guy thing, and it doesn’t work. Not in real life.”
And f**k, that landed. Like a punch to the ribs. Because right then, I got it. Someone had hurt her. Badly. Someone had taken her heart and shattered it. Someone had held her close, only to toss her aside like it didn’t matter.
“I’m not like that,” I said quickly, the words tumbling out before I could think better of it. “I’m not him. Whoever he was.”
Yeah, I was well known on campus. Yeah, people cheered when I played, clapped me on the back when I passed by. But I’d never let it go to my head. I knew who I was. I wasn’t some goddamn golden boy walking around waiting to break hearts.
I was just a guy. A guy who liked a girl more than he should’ve. A guy who was completely screwed if she didn’t give him a shot.
“Everyone else is,” she said, finally turning her head just enough to speak, but not enough to look at me. She kept walking, kept her distance like I hadn’t just bared my heart for her.
“I don’t understand, Bree,” I said, picking up my pace, not willing to let this end here. I reached out, fingers brushing her shoulder before I gripped it gently and turned her to face me. “Explain this to me,” I pleaded, bending a little so I could meet her eyes.
Her gaze dragged over me slowly. Not with desire-but with scrutiny. She was studying me like I was a puzzle she didn’t trust. Like she was searching for a crack in the foundation, proof that I
wasn’t worth the effort.
It made me feel like I was standing naked in the cold, exposed and raw.
“You can’t say stuff like that,” I said, swallowing hard as her eyes held mine. “Just like you said… you
don’t know me.”
