Page 4 of Faking the Goal

"They're stupid rules."

"They've served me remarkably well."

Corey pushes away from the door and comes up behind me, close enough that I catch his grin in the mirror. I know he has a thing for me and wants this to be more than just hooking up. He's never actually said it, but I'm not fucking blind.

Corey rakes his fingers through his already hopeless blond hair. "Then maybe we should stop hooking up."

I glance at him through the mirror. "Oh?"

"Yeah." His grin turns boyish, confident as ever. "We date instead. Problem solved. Then your stupid hookup rules don't apply to me anymore."

I slowly turn around. "Are you seriously asking me out? In a bathroom?"

"Hey, I would've bought you dinner first, but you texted me at two in the morning. You really fucked up my timeline here."

A laugh slips out of me. "Wow. Romance isn't dead after all."

"I can be romantic." He gives me an exaggeratedly offended look. "Give me a chance and I'll prove it. I'd treat you a hell of a lot better than Kirk Michaels ever did."

My smile freezes.

It's only for a second, but my body reacts before I can stop it, something cold crawling beneath my skin at the sound of Kirk's name.

I'd treat you right, Taylor.

Let me take care of you.

Just give me a chance.

Jesus.

Kirk fed me variations of the same bullshit before I finally agreed to date him. I'd never really done relationships before him, but for one stupid, vulnerable moment last year, I'd wanted to know what it felt like. To be loved and cared for by someone who actually wanted to stick around.

And Kirk had been so fucking convincing.

Flowers. Constant texts. Surprise dates. Compliments until I practically drowned in them. He gave me everything I thought a boyfriend was supposed to give me until I finally believed maybe he was genuine.

Look how well that turned out.

Nope.

Not doing this right now.

I shove the memory back into whatever dark corner of my brain it crawled out of and cross the small space between Corey and me. I give him a soft smile as I run my fingertips affectionately along his jaw.

"Corey, you're sweet." His eyebrows shoot up, and I immediately add, "Don't let that go to your head. But I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now."

Disappointment flashes across his face, but it only lasts a moment before that charming grin slides right back into place.

"All right, all right. But if you ever want to make an exception, you know where to find me."

I stay behind for another few seconds to fix myself up, although one look in the mirror confirms I still look like I've just been thoroughly fucked. My cheeks are flushed, my lips are swollen, my lipstick is smeared, my hair is a complete mess, and there's a faint red mark blooming beneath my collarbone that I'm going to pretend I don't see.

Whatever.

I came here to get fucked into a state of blissful exhaustion, and mission fucking accomplished.

Now all I want is my bed and six uninterrupted hours of dreamless sleep.