My words from last night, and the look of defeat on Eli's face, made my stomach twist that next morning at breakfast. The private continental spread in my parents hotel suite was exquisite, but still I pushed my assorted fruit around my plate.
"You okay?" Trinity Farrow leaned in, putting one of her petite ebony hands on my thick white UCLA pullover.
"Yeah. Just tired." I lied, impaling a piece of cantaloupe. I knew Trinity wouldn't buy it, she was always too intuitive, just like her mom Summer.
"Really?! You left the gala pretty early..." Her bright grey eyes narrowed a little shooting between me and Eli who picked that very moment to lope into the hotel room. I shrugged and stared back down at my plate.
"Are you still coming with us to the concert tonight?" Trinity switched tactics, realizing her other line of question would lead nowhere.
"Of course, I wouldn't miss it." I grinned around the red grape in my mouth. Trinity and her all girl band The Fembot Anarchy were slated to play at Geffen Playhouse down the way from UCLA tonight. Marissa and Connor and a handful of my friends from school had already planned on meeting up around ten o'clock.
"Wouldn't miss what?" Eli set his heaping breakfast plate a little too close to me. My stomach growled as I smelled his bacon and his body wash. The place where citrus and salt meet. Delicious.
"Nothing." I grumbled, shifting away from him and stabbing a pineapple from my plate. Straight fruitacide, darling.
"I'm having a show tonight." Trinity ignored me, smiling easily at Eli. "You should come."
"No." I interrupted. "He's busy tonight."
"No, I'm not." He pursed his lips, blowing on his coffee and my filthy mind contemplated what it would feel like to have him blowing on me instead. "Besides, if Aves is going so am I. I don't know if you've heard, but we are kind of a packaged deal this summer..." He winked at me and popped one of my grapes into his mouth.
"Oh, you are?!" Trinity smirked, snuggling into Collins' side where she was on her phone openly ignoring her. She was a terrible girlfriend.
"Yeah. We're together." Eli squeezed my hand, but I quickly ripped it from his grasp.
"I wish you'd stop telling people that." I grumbled, stabbing another piece of fruit from my plate.
"I wish you'd stop denying it." He whispered back licking his lips.
**********
I went for a much more innocent look for the concert that night. My short blond hair was curled and tucked behind my diamond studded earrings, and my black Doc Marten combat boots were a stark contrast to my pale pink dress with the thick straps and sweetheart neckline.
I sprayed on my favorite vanilla Chanel perfume as the doorbell rang. I knew who it was immediately. My movie star chaperone. Who was fifteen minutes early.
"Good evening, Elijah." My mother cooed downstairs, and I rolled my emerald eyes in the mirror. "Avery's still up in her room. Can I get you anything while you wait?"
"No thank you, Samantha." Eli said. Always the gentleman.
I snatched my small white cross body YSL purse from my bed and stomped down the rot iron staircase. My eyes met Eli's on the last step and I almost missed it, tripping forward, right into him.
YOU ARE READING
The Sweetest Summer
Romance**COMPLETE** Elijah West was everything, and I was just...Avery Adams. The tomboy, the girl next door, the friend zone occupant. The girl who somehow grew up while he was gone filming his television show. But this summer he's back, and the sparks a...
