Never Say Never

Seven

ERIN P.O.V.

For the second weekend in a row, I woke up hungover and quickly decided this was a habit I needed to break. I rolled over with a groan and noticed a glass of Chad's miracle juice sitting on my end table. I wondered when he had brought that in here. He was taking care of me again? I didn't think I blacked out again, so I didn't think Chad had been around when I got home.

I remembered he'd come to the party, not dressed for it and I'd felt my heart do a flip upon spotting him talking to the twins, but then he'd smiled at me and left. I'd tried to focus on what Cohen was saying, but after seeing Chad, it had been near impossible. I'd been relieved when Cohen went to get another drink. Then the twins dropped their bombshell. They told me that Chad had wanted to warn me about Cohen being a not-so-nice guy. I didn't know whether to believe it or not, but it honestly made sense. I'd already been thinking that Cohen seemed to have a second meaning with everything he said. He seemed shady. So Chad's warning just solidified my decision not to pursue anything with Cohen. Decision made, we'd left the frat house, before Cohen could return to my side. Chloe knew of another party going on, so we changed locations. Thankfully nothing too eventful happened at the other party.

Now, here I was, afraid to leave my own bedroom. This was my house too. I shouldn't have to hide from one of my roommates. Said roommate someone I'd known most of my life. I wasn't sure what had suddenly changed between us, but in reality, nothing had changed. Sure I might now notice how hot he was and that even while he was annoying, he could also be really sweet. That was it though. He'd been pretty clear when he'd walked out on me yesterday, that we'd never be anything more than what we currently were, which was...well, we weren't even friends, really. The dynamics of our relationship didn't have to change just because I was physically more aware of him.

Decision made, I got up and headed for the bathroom. I didn't hear any noises around the house, so I took that to mean the guys were still asleep. Good. I needed time to myself before I would feel up to dealing with either one of them. My brother had tried to tell me what to do last night and he knew that never worked. So what was his deal? I was ignoring the fact that Eric had basically tried to give me the same warning about Cohen that Chad had given me. I didn't want to think about why I was taking Chad at his word, but hadn't given my brother the same curtesy.

In the shower, I stood under the hottest spray I could stand and wished my boy troubles away. I'd come to Highland expecting to experience it all. My biggest hope was to meet some dashing guy who would sweep me off my feet, treat me like a princess, and propose to me on graduation day. I'd been so naive. College guys didn't act like that. I'd probably be lucky to find a guy willing to have any relationship with me that didn't involve a bed. It was a sad world we lived in.

A sudden rude pounding on the bathroom door startled me so bad I almost slipped, but thankfully caught myself, just as I heard Eric yell, "You better not use all the hot water! I've got somewhere to be, so hurry up!"

I quickly washed my hair while I contemplated taking my sweet time just to piss Eric off. Why had I thought it would be a good idea to live with my brother? When he started pounding on the door again, I rolled my eyes and shut off the water. I toweled off, slipped on my robe, and brushed my teeth. When I exited the bathroom, Eric literally pushed me out of the way and shut himself inside. I glared at the closed bathroom door, before turning and then froze. Chad was standing in his bedroom doorway, leaning casually against the doorjamb. His eyes were racking up and down my body. My robe was short, so my bare legs were on display and I could practically see into his mind, that he was picturing me without the robe. Instinctively, I pulled the knot of my robe tighter, which made him smirk.

I was debating about heading to my room, without saying anything, when he suddenly pushed off the wall and sauntered toward me. He wore a white t-shirt and baggy sweat pants. I shouldn't find him sexy, but I did. What the hell was wrong with my hormones, all of a sudden? I backed up, nervously, until I ran into the bathroom door. Shit, Eric was on the other side of that door and if he knew his best friend was currently stalking his little sister, all hell would break loose. Although, I could hear the shower running, so I knew Eric wouldn't be coming out anytime soon.