Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 122030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
“Are you crazy?” I whisper. “If my dad catches you, he’s calling the SWAT team.”
Fenn flashes a lopsided smile. “I wanted to check on you,” he whispers back.
“A text would have sufficed.”
“No.” He approaches me to wrap his arms around my waist. “It wouldn’t.”
Then he kisses me. A sweet, brief kiss that ends before I’ve even kissed him back.
“But I’ll go if you want me to,” he murmurs.
“I didn’t say that.” Now that he’s here, with his forehead pressed to mine and his chest warm against my body, I’m glad he came. “You can stay a little while. If you promise to be quiet.”
Fenn presses one finger to his lips. Then presses those lips to mine.
Somehow, every time we kiss, I learn something new about him. Discover another way he makes me completely undone. As my fingers travel the breadth of his shoulders and comb through his hair, I notice for the first time how goose bumps emerge on the back of his neck when I rub my hand against the grain.
“I know I just saw you,” he breathes against my mouth. “But I already missed you.”
And in that moment, I find the relief that had been lacking, the sense of finality that’s it over. The entire ordeal of the last year. I no longer have to be anxious wondering when the next blindside will come, constantly peering over my shoulder for more bad news. Afraid of being in my own skin. Scared to let myself love him.
Fenn walks us backward to my bed. We’ve never had a problem when our eyes are closed. When our bodies meet, there are no misunderstandings. I think it’s when we see each other best. Honestly and completely.
He lies on his back against the pillows and draws me toward him, then drags my leg up over his hip. I feel him hard beneath my thigh. His breath catches slightly as I run my fingernails under his T-shirt and across his abdomen.
“I’m sorry tonight ended the way it did,” he says.
“I’m not. We’ll have other dances.”
“Sure you wouldn’t rather get a hotel room next time? Skip the formalities.”
I shove his shoulder. “You’re not that charming.”
Fenn licks his lips, not hiding his smirk in the slightest. “I don’t know. I think I might be.”
He cradles the back of my head to bring my lips to his again. It’s like he suddenly can’t go even seconds without kissing me. Now that we’ve found a way back to each other, neither of us want to waste a second. So we lie there tangled together, becoming reacquainted with the ways we make the other breathe a little harder.
His mouth against my neck. His thumb gently skimming my nipples over my shirt. The way he grips the back of my thigh against his erection, and I know he’s nearly crawling out of his skin to get closer to me.
“God, I want you.” Then he rolls us over, pressing himself between my legs. His hand slips beneath my shirt.
Everything in me wants to give in to this moment. To have this with him. But I hesitate. Because a small but very loud part of me still regrets the chances we didn’t have.
“Wait,” I whisper.
He meets my eyes, pushing strands of hair from my face.
“I wasted my first time,” I admit.
I don’t regret being with Lawson. But I regret that it meant Fenn and I didn’t have that moment.
“I want a do-over. And this time, I want it to be special. Not rushed. You know?”
Fenn eases away to lie on his back then brings me to rest my head against his chest. “I get it. Totally. I don’t want to pressure you into something you’re not ready for.”
“I’m ready,” I say, biting back a laugh. “Like, so ready. But I want it to be right. If that makes sense.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Case. I love you, and I’ll wait for you forever.”
My heart expands in my chest, so full that it strains against my ribcage. Gripping his shirt in my fist, I lean up to kiss him.
“I love you,” I tell him, watching the grin pull across his lips. “So much.”
“We’ve got nothing but time,” Fenn promises. “We’ll wait.” He kisses me again. “We’ll wait for us.”
EPILOGUE
FENN
TWO DAYS LATER
EVERYTHING ABOUT THESE OLD DORMS IS NOISY. THE FLOORBOARDS creak. Hinges squeal. Despite my best attempts, my entrance isn’t subtle when I get back to our room just after sunrise. RJ rolls over in bed and scratches the crust from his eyes.
“Hey,” he mumbles. “You just get in?”
“Yeah. Sorry I woke you. I was trying to be quiet.”
I’m exhausted but too wired to sleep, so I spend the next couple of hours watching TV while RJ goes back to sleep. He gets up again around eight thirty, hits the bathroom, and returns to join me on the sofa, where he gives me a sidelong look.