Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 71915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
“Holy shit! Is this us?”
I winced as I glanced at the page. I’d forgotten I’d sometimes draw the swimmers on their platforms. And sometimes during relays too.
“Maybe.” I felt hot all over. “If I was forced to sit at your meets, what else was I supposed to do?”
His eyes crinkled at the corners as he tapped my wrist. “I love it.”
This close, I could smell his cinnamon gum, the hint of beer on his breath, and that clean chlorine smell wafting off his skin. My heart was pounding when I admitted, “That might’ve been the exact moment I knew.”
“Knew?” He sought my gaze.
“That I was crushing on you.” Why else would I start drawing Alex in the pool? Besides boredom, of course.
He bit his lip as if to stifle a groan. “Sometimes, that morning on the dock still stars in my late-night thoughts.”
“Yeah?”
“I’ll admit I wondered more than once if it only happened because you were emotional that day.”
“I like to think it’s what made me finally confess. Everything was so raw and close to the surface anyway.” I rubbed at my chest. “Right here.”
Alex swore under his breath. “Good to know.”
When I stepped closer, he gently placed the notebook on the dresser and looked behind him as if to ensure the door was still closed.
“Remy, I…” He shivered as I backed him up against the wall, caging him with my arms. It felt like I was moving on autopilot, unable to help myself.
“Yeah, me too.” I leaned forward to bury my face in his neck because I just wanted to be closer after admiring him from afar for weeks. And damn, his skin was soft, and he smelled so good.
“What are we doing?” He squirmed against me.
“I…I don’t know.” I drew back, wondering if I’d come on too strong. “Sorry.”
“No, don’t stop.” He wound his arms around my neck and pulled me into a tight embrace. It was nice and warm and totally hot because I could feel him plumping up against me.
“Maybe I haven’t gotten you out of my system yet, and now that we’re both on the same campus…”
A noise in the hallway made him stiffen against me. It was likely outside the bathroom, but a reminder nonetheless.
“I almost forgot there’s a party going on.”
Alex’s eyes widened. “And Bailey’s downstairs.”
“And now I’ve got a hard-on,” I admitted, not that he couldn’t feel it for himself. “You leave first.”
Alex was panting as I stepped back. “If I can calm down enough.”
A knock on the door startled us, and Alex’s hand flew to his mouth to cover a gasp.
“Remy?” It was Derek. “Dude, seriously, I need help with another keg. Don’t hide out on me.”
“I’m not. I’m changing,” I replied, straightening my clothes. “I’ll be right down.”
Alex and I stared at each other for another beat, neither willing to leave first.
I reached out my hand, my fingers circling his nape. “I’m gonna put my tongue down your throat if you don’t go.”
He moaned and swayed toward me. Fucking hell. “What if I want that?”
I swallowed roughly. “Even knowing it’s a bad idea?”
He bit his lip and nodded.
“Goddamn it, Alex. You’re too much of a temptation.”
“And you’re not?” he challenged.
“This is not helping my boner situation.”
When his gaze leveled on my crotch, I stiffened further.
“It’s not helping mine either,” Alex said, then, “What’s the real reason you didn’t go talk to that girl?” When he glanced from my eyes to my lips, I almost crashed our mouths together, but I held myself back. “The one you’d already hooked up with?”
I leaned closer. “Because I’d rather talk to you.”
“Do you know how much that cranks me up?” I heard his quiet groan. “I like talking to you too.”
The music got louder, and there was a shout from downstairs, another hint for us to leave the room. But it was so hard to let him go.
Finally, I stepped back. Alex reached behind him for the handle, his eyes on me as he slipped out the door.
I waited, wondering what in the hell I was doing egging Alex on, but I couldn’t seem to resist the urge to be close to him.
Once I calmed down, I made my way back to the first floor to help Derek. Alex and I avoided each other so Bailey wouldn’t be suspicious, but it didn’t stop our eyes from meeting across the room and the beer pong table until the party broke up after midnight.
10
Alex
We’d just finished dinner after our afternoon swim practice, and a group of us were heading toward the dorms when I spotted Remy across the quad with Derek. Ever since that party, I couldn’t stop thinking about how close we’d come to crossing the line. And our text messages had become bolder as a result. Or maybe only mine.
How was cleanup? I’d asked the following night.