Page 65 of Spring Tide

“I definitely did a minute ago. And thirty minutes before that.” His voice is reassuring, gruff, with a hint of his normal shyness. I’m sure if I could see them, the tips of his ears would be burning. “Since I saw you come out of the bathroom in that towel, actually.”

I breathe a soft sigh of relief, curling my knees back against him. “But you also want to take it slow?”

“Like I told you, it’s been a while for me. A long while. And I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you even wanted me to kiss you. But I do want you, just maybe not tonight.” His palm presses against my cheek. “Is that okay?”

I lean into him, soaking up the warmth from his fingers. “It’s more than okay, Luca. I had no expectations tonight other than honesty.”

“I can do honesty. And maybe just ... I’d like to hold you while we fall asleep.” His hand drifts from my cheek to my shoulder, tucking me against his side. “If that’s okay?”

“Please.” I shift on the mattress, pushing back until our bodies are nestled tightly together. His arm bends around my waist, large fingers splayed across my stomach, his nose buried in the crook of my neck. With one last kiss against my pulse point, we both drift off to sleep.

* * *

“Shit!”The sound of muffled swearing jolts me awake. My eyes slowly blink open, heavy with sleep as I take in the sight of Eden’s crouched form. “Sorry!”

Luca stirs beside me, grunting softly. The covers are strewn toward the bottom of the bed and tangled between our intertwined thighs. One hand caresses my bare stomach, pajamas askew, while his thumb dips a half inch below the waistband of my shorts.

“I didn’t know you had company,” Eden whispers again, her high-pitched voice carrying across the room.

“Shh!” I whisper-shout in return, an uncontrollable smile creeping onto my face. “You’re gonna wake him up.”

“Sorry, I just forgot my toothbrush,” she says, holding up the slim piece of plastic. “Grant’s taking me out for breakfast before we head back. He ended up riding the bus here, but do you mind if he catches a ride home with us?”

“I can just go with Luca. Give you guys some more alone time.”

“You don’t mind?”

“Of course not.” Luca tightens his hold on me, a barely perceptible twitching of his fingers.

“Okay! I’ll just see you in class tomorrow.”

“Drive safe,” I say with a wave.

“You too. Oh, and Harper, I’m glad your plan worked out.” She smirks, yanking open the door to our hotel room. “Looks like we both got some much-needed action last night.”

Luca’s arms grow stiff around me. I shift on the bed, grabbing the nearest soft object to lob at Eden. Unfortunately, the door slams behind her with a violent bang, the cheap throw pillow falling limply to the floor.

Luca flinches in response. He pulls back, twists onto his side, and pushes himself into a seated position. His legs hang off the side of the bed, back facing toward me now.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” I tease, shifting onto my knees behind him. I lean forward to place a heavy hand on his shoulder. “Were you pretending to be asleep that whole time?”

“No.”

I scooch my hips even closer, replacing my hand on his shoulder with a soft kiss.

His spine is stiff, voice stilted. “So I guess I’m giving you a ride home, then.”

“Is-is that okay?”

“Sure.”

I maneuver myself beside him on the edge of the bed, leaving a small half inch of space between our thighs. “Areyouokay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” His gaze is trained on the window in front of us. There’s a subpar view of the pavement through the crack in the curtains. A tiny gray bird flies by.

“Because you’re acting funny after we spent the night together.” I knock my knee against his, gently jolting him back into the room. “It’s a bit of a red flag.”

He shakes his head. “It’s nothing.”

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