Page 182 of Curvy Girl Summer

“Youarespecial.” His hand slipped into my lap, settling between my legs as he gripped my thigh. “So, if I had to drive here to tell you, to prove to you that what I feel is real… and that you’re the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about when I go to bed, it was worth the trip. Because I don’t want there to be any confusion about how I feel about you.”

My heart skipped a beat as I approached the stop sign.

“If you keep talking like this, I’m going to fall in love with you,” I joked, even though I was serious. The way I was feeling, there was enough evidence to conclude that I was already there.

But I wasn’t ready to admit that yet.

I felt him staring at me, so I met his gaze.

“That’s exactly what I want,” he uttered.

Heat spread across my skin at his words, and in that moment, I knew Ahmad Williamson was in love with me.

It was in his tone. It was in his eyes. It was in his touch.

He squeezed the meaty flesh of my thigh as if to corroborate my realization.

With our seat belts on and my foot on the brake, an attempt at a kiss wasn’t as smooth as I’d hoped. But as soon as we got enough slack for our lips to meet, the kiss confirmed everything for me. The way he smiled against my mouth let me know my feelings were apparent to him as well.

Soft, sensual, and expressive, our mouths and tongues said everything we weren’t ready to say and more.

A horn blared from behind us, startling us both.

“Oh, shit!” I exclaimed, seeing the car behind us at the stop sign.

Looking both ways before making a move, I stepped on the gas.

I felt Ahmad tense as we eased onto the main street, so I kept my hands on the steering wheel and my eyes on the road. Our destination was only a mile away, but we took the trip in silence. Ahmad didn’t seem to relax again until we pulled into the parking spot.

I placed my hand on top of his. “You good?”

He raised my hand to his lips and nodded. A few seconds later, he asked, “You good?”

“With you? Always.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his smile.

We went to the gas station closest to the lake and grabbed some snacks and a toothbrush. We devoured the chips and pastries on the way back to the house. By the time we got back into the room, we were ready to crash.

Sleeping naked, my back to his front and his arms around me, I drifted into the best sleep of my life.

Until a loud banging woke me up hours later.

“What’s that?” Ahmad wondered groggily.

“I have no idea,” I responded, pushing myself up into a sitting position. Rubbing my eyes, I looked around, feeling a little discombobulated. The sun was pouring into the room, and I had no idea what time it was or where the noise was coming from. I grabbed my phone.

“Oh, shit,” I reacted, eyes wide.

“What? What’s up?” Ahmad’s deep voice was etched with concern.

“It’s eleven o’clock. We have to check out at noon. The cleaning crew is here now.” Jumping out the bed, I threw on the first thing I saw to cover myself, and then I ran downstairs. Giving them directions to start outside and then work their way inside, I went around to each bedroom to make sure everyone was up and getting ready to get out. Two of my cousins had already left. Mecca was inthe process of leaving. Jazmyn was up and packing. Nina had just woken up. When I made it back to my room, Ahmad was in the shower.

So, I joined him.

The decision put me fifteen minutes behind schedule, but it was worth every single minute.

“What are you doing today?” Ahmad asked after placing my suitcase in my trunk.

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