Emily is about to start college in Arizona, a state where she doesn’t know a single person. But she has her parents and her dog and firm plans for her future, which include school and basketball. Love will have to wait. However, when their new neighbors pop over to introduce themselves, Emily is rendered speechless by the attractive and flirtatious Charlie.
From the second Charlie meets Emily, she cannot deny their chemistry. And though Emily is very focused on her studies and basketball, it does not discourage Charlie from showing her interest openly.
Sparks fly between the two, but when a new acquaintance warns Emily that Charlie is a player with a reputation, Emily puts her guard up, leaving Charlie to desperately try to win her trust back.
What will Charlie have to do to convince Emily that she is a changed woman?
We were sitting on my bed, watching a movie. I decided to watch a movie, because talking to her was too stressful for me. I had learned that she was in her third year of college -- business major. She was living with her parents while she attended school. They were a close-knit family.
After I told her I was going to be on the basketball team, she excitedly told me that her best friend was on the team. “I should have known you were athletic.”
“What do you mean?” I turned my eyes from the television to her, briefly.
“With that body,” she said in a voice that gave me chills. I stared at the television and tried to hide my smile. “And you try hiding behind those glasses, but they only make you hotter.”
How could she say that so casually? Thank God the lights were off in here or she would see how bright red my face was. I was speechless. Say something!
“Thank you.” Smooth, Emily. Real smooth.
She laid down on my bed, propped up on her elbow, still staring. “So, did you leave a boyfriend behind in Iowa?”
I laughed loudly. “A boyfriend? No. Also, it’s Ohio.” I was so busy laughing at her thinking I had a boyfriend, that I had forgotten how nervous I was.
“What’s so funny?” she asked, amused.
“I haven’t ever had a boyfriend.” I was staring back at her now. I couldn’t look away. I could see the green in her eyes, even in the dim lighting.
“So, you’ve never dated?”
“No, I’ve dated,” I said slowly, waiting for her to put the pieces together. I didn’t have the courage to say I was a lesbian.
“So,” she started off, leaning in a little more closely. “You like girls.”
I nodded and continued looking into her eyes. A small smile was forming on her lips.
“What kind of girls are you into?”
Girls like you. “Oh, I don’t know.” I studied her this time. She had a few faint freckles. Her eyelashes thick.
“You know, I like girls, too,” she almost whispered.
The tension was killing me, but I tried to keep my cool. “What kind of girls are you into?” I was proud that I was able to get that sentence out, because the feelings were suffocating me.
She leaned in and whispered into my ear, her breath giving me chills, “Girls like you.”
She lingered next to my face, before pulling away ever so slightly. Her lips were just centimeters from mine. I could smell her perfume. She smelled like wildflowers. She reminded me of Ohio. But Ohio never made me feel this good. This was it. Fuck it. I was going to close the gap and kiss her. As I leaned in, I toppled over onto her. Our lips barely grazed. Layla had run into the room and jumped onto the bed, ruining our perfect moment.
She laughed and pet her and it was apparent that the moment was over. “And that’s my cue. I should head home. But text me, okay?” she said casually, getting out of my bed and leaving me there, dumbfounded.
“Yeah. Yeah, sure. I will,” I mumbled and tried shaking the fog from my brain.
She smirked and winked at me. And that was it. She was gone, and I was left to pick my brain up from the floor and try to remember how to function.
