Page 55 of Ink & Ambition

Danika grabbed onto Sydney’s hand and took off running toward the building.

“See you inside, Margot and thanks for walking with us, Ryan!” Sydney yells as she’s being pulled away, knowing exactlywhat Danika is doing. Even while drunk, Danika still has her motives.

I laugh and roll my eyes at their antics. “I would invite you in, but I’m not sure what exactly you’d be walking into.”

Ryan laughs. “Nah, that’s okay. It’s late, I should be getting back anyway.”

I nod, going to pull my hand from his, but he only holds it tighter. When I look up to meet his eyes, they’re boring into mine with an intensity I wasn’t expecting. I know without a shadow of a doubt that he is going to kiss me. Where the doubt comes in is if I want him to or not.

Ryan leans in and his breath hits my face. It’s not minty like Alex’s. Why am I noticing that? Why am I thinking about Alex right now? Instead of doing that, I close my eyes, leaning closer into him.

Everything’s better when you’re here.

I blink my eyes open and pull back. “Thanks for the walk. I’ll call you, okay?”

Ryan steps back, letting my hand drop softly. He gives me a tight smile, and I turn away toward the door. “Is there something going on with you and Prescott? Something more than just this weird friendship you have?”

He has every right to ask, he is the one who’s been giving me the attention that Alex hasn’t. But still, I don’t know if he deserves to know the full truth about us. I don’t even know the full truth about us.

“No, Ryan. He’s just my friend. That’s it.”

“Because I like you, Margot. I really like you and if I can avoid a painful situation down the line, I’d prefer to take that option now rather than later.”

When I left Alex’s room, I had vowed to myself to give it my best shot with Ryan. Alex and I are nothing more than friendsand it’s time I proved that to myself. And to him. Even if it’s not so clear to me whichhimI’m referring to.

“I like you, too,” I tell him, closing the distance again. I should let myself have this. Danika is always telling me to let myself live, well…no one else is trying to live with me more than Ryan is.

Reaching up on my toes, I place a light, gentle kiss to his lips that clearly takes him by surprise. He seems to buffer for a few seconds before snapping out of his trance and wrapping his arms around my waist, pulling me tighter. His neck cranes down so I don’t have to stretch and his lips move against mine again, more hurried than before, more urgent.

The kiss is simple, easy. Like a walk through the park on a spring morning. With a gentle caress, his hands move down my body like he’s trying to make sure every inch of my back is touched. There are no tongues, the softness of his lips is enough for now. After a few seconds, I pull back and Ryan smiles.

“Goodnight, Margot.”

“Goodnight,” I reply, grinning widely before turning around and finally entering the building. I press my fingers to my lips to hold in the feeling of Ryan against my skin. It really was a nice kiss.

Is that what you want? Someone nice?

I shake my head furiously, getting Alex’s words out of my head. I need to go to sleep, but I know Dani and Syd are waiting impatiently on the other side of the door, so I put on my best face and gear up to tell them the bedtime story they’re waiting for.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Margot

Rollingoverinmybed, I feel a soft kiss on my nose and I open my eyes to see Ryan smiling at me. He pulls me close, wrapping his hand around my neck to kiss my lips and I sigh into his embrace. Feeling more risque than usual on a Saturday morning, I kiss him deeper before pushing him onto his back and straddling his hips. Ryan grabs my waist and sits up to pull me to his chest. I let my head fall back, my hair cascading down my back as I do my best to hold in the moan that’s threatening to escape from my mouth.

When I lower my head, it’s now Alex who holds my gaze with a look that would have me soaking if I wasn’t already. His lips are at my ear. He’s calling me sunshine and a slew of otherdirtierthings and my head falls aside to allow him more access to my neck. I feel him smile against my pulse before he starts peppering the space with kisses.

With a jolt, I snap back into reality. There’s a sheen of sweat across my brow, and I blink a couple of times before grabbing my notebook and reluctantly writing everything down. I knowDanika is never going to let me live this down, but I have to show her so she can help make sense of this mess in my mind.

There’s a knock at my door before I can get out of bed and Sydney pops her head. “Heading to the gym. Need a ride to campus?”

I look at the clock on my phone, also noticing a good morning text from Ryan waiting for me. I do need to get some work done, but most of it I can do from my desk here, so I shake my head. I pull myself out of bed as she leaves the doorway and walk out to find Dani still sleeping on the couch.

“Morning, huns,” I say loudly, dropping the notebook on her stomach. Danika grunts from the impact and mumbles something about “bitches” before rolling over onto her side. I anticipate the sounds of the book falling to the floor but instead I look to see Danika cuddling it like a pillow as her snores pick up.

“See ya later,” Sydney says with a chuckle as she leaves. I walk into the kitchen and grab a cup of coffee that sweet Sydney made before she left. Seriously no idea what I would do without her.

Grabbing another mug, I fill it the way Danika likes and sit on the coffee table in front of her. I place the cup in front of her and move it back and forth, wafting the rich smell under her nose. Danika sniffs and then blindly reaches out for the cup, which I immediately pull away from her and place on the table next to me.

---