The Summer Before

Chapter Four

Tessa

Oh my God! This is not fucking happening!

This is not fucking happening!

Shit!

I finally get a grip and try to cover myself with my hands. "Levi! Get the fuck out!"

"Shit, Tessa! I thought you were someone else." His eyes are almost as wide as mine as he realizes I'm not his companion from last night.

For a few seconds, he looks as shocked as I am, but the look of embarrassment and horror quickly melts away into a mask of confidence and cockiness.

"Get out!"

He straightens his shoulders, refusing to budge, standing proud and naked in front of me. His raging hard-on still at full mast.

"What? Don't want another go, babe?" He shoots me a cocky grin.

My jaw drops. What the fuck did he just say to me?

Fresh anger courses through me. "Get the fuck out, Levi!"

He turns, stepping out of the shower. Before closing the shower door, he looks at me, zeroing in on my hand placement.

"It's nothing I haven't seen before, Tess."

I shoot him a glare, still trying to cover myself as the steam around me disappears. "Screw you, asshole!"

He locks eyes with mine, giving me an equally chilling look. "No thanks! Been there, done that."

I'm too stunned to reply as Levi disappears through the bathroom door. The door shuts with a bang, and I finally have much-needed space away from the man who turned my world upside down last summer. I shouldn't let him affect me like this, but I can't help it. His words cut me like a knife.

After everything he put me through last summer, I shouldn't give a damn about anything he says. Yet, here I am... Caring.

And still naked.

Fuck!

I give myself an extra minute to calm down, making sure I'm not about to start angry crying before shutting off the water and wrapping myself in a towel.

He doesn't deserve my tears. He's had enough of them already.

After getting dressed, I quickly grabbed my purse and keys, making a beeline for my car. No way am I sticking around here any longer and dealing with the ass from my past. I need to put as much distance as possible between myself and Levi, stat.

~

I pull up outside Colin and Micah's apartment, armed with freshly made iced coffees and an assortment of baked goods from our favorite café. Colin and I have been best friends since high school. He, Charlotte, and I were inseparable through those four years and beyond.

He's one of my favorite human beings, and he and Charlotte are the two people I turn to for anything and everything in my life. If I'm having a meltdown, I know those two can talk me down. When I need advice on major life decisions, I turn to Colin and Charlotte. If I have a fashion emergency...

You guessed it- Colin and Charlotte- though, on that last one, more so Colin. He's a professional stylist, and his taste is beyond impeccable- case in point, his boyfriend, Micah.

Micah looks like he was ripped from the pages of a men's fashion magazine. His auburn hair is always perfectly styled with just the right amount of product, his skin is flawless, and his smile is swoon-worthy. Plus, the man can wear tailored suits better than anyone I know.