Page 63 of #Starstruck

“Yeah, you’re the first person I’ve ever been with who didn’t text me forty times a day when I was off on location.”

I leaned forward, feeling bold now that I’d decided he was my boyfriend, and pressed a kiss at the base of his throat. I heard his breath catch. “I’m not really the clingy type.”

“It wasn’t about that. I mean, it might have partially been.” He stopped talking and closed his eyes when I kissed his neck again, softly. “It was about checking up on me, and they wanted me to know how much they hated that I was gone. They were angry I had to be away on a regular basis.”

“I didn’t like you being gone, either. I missed you. But I’m good being on my own. And why would I get mad? You were working. It couldn’t be helped.”

I kissed him again right below his ear, and he groaned softly and then put his hands on my shoulders to push me back. “It is much too late, and you are much too beautiful, and that feels much too good for me to keep my hands to myself. You should probably go inside. My lack of self-control is what landed me in rehab in the first place.” I loved the rough timbre in his voice.

“You’re not going to walk me to the door?” I protested, leaning forward slightly to see if he’d let me.

He didn’t. “I’ll watch you from here, and then you can text me when you get inside safely.”

I knew I should listen to him and stop acting like the Tease-manian Devil. “Okay. Good night.” He released me, and I got out of the car but stopped before shutting the door. “Before I go, I want you to know that what happened tonight between us at Austin’s house ... that was even better than meeting Alex Trebek.”

He flashed me his most charming grin, and it was all I could do not to climb back inside and throw myself at him. “You’re only saying that because when I introduced you, you yelled out ‘Who is Alex Trebek?’”

Embarrassment rippled through me, turning my cheeks bright red. “When are you going to stop teasing me about that?”

“I was planning on never.”

I sighed. “Good night, Chase.” I ran up the three flights of stairs, my feet feeling light and carefree. Even with multiple blisters from my new shoes. When I was inside, I texted him that I had made it through the gauntlet safely and then took off my annoying heels. He texted back to tell me to lock the door. I liked that he was protective.

I really should have stopped provoking him. I think I was just so happy and thrilled that Chase Covington not only liked me, not only wanted to kiss me (and more), but also was my protective, gorgeous, amazing boyfriend. I couldn’t help myself. I saw dots on my screen, indicating that he was typing to me.

I was glad he couldn’t see me blushing.

I heard an engine rev and a car pull out of the parking lot, and I assumed it was Chase leaving. I didn’t want to text him while he was driving, but the cure? The cure for what? Boredom? Alcoholism? Having to date women whose IQs were lower than their BMIs?

I padded into the kitchen and saw a bag from CVS on the counter. Lexi had made a snack run!

I opened the bag, but the only thing inside was an empty pregnancy-test box. Oh no. A second later I heard her sniffling.

I ran to the bathroom and knocked on the door. “Lex? What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“It’s open.” I found her on the floor next to the sink with trails of black mascara running down her cheeks. She’d been crying for a while. “I’m okay. The tests were negative.”

Hadn’t we already déjà-ed this vu? “What happened? You told me you’re always careful.” I sat on the floor next to her and put my arm around her shoulders.

“Remember when I was sick last month and I took those antibiotics? Apparently those can interfere with birth control pills. Which I feel like somebody should have told me.”

“Lexi, how many times do I have to tell you that the only one hundred percent effective form of birth control is having my social skills?”

That got her laughing. “I thought you were going to say abstinence.”

“That, too.” The horse was kind of out of the barn on that one. “If you had been?”

“I don’t know. I think I might love Gavin.” She laid her head against my shoulder.

“Seriously? I’ve never heard you say that about anyone.” Other than Chase, but she didn’t even know him. Not the way I did.

“I can’t tell.”

“My mom always says go with your gut.”

“My gut is really small and easily distracted.” She sighed, and I squeezed her.

“Yeah, mine just demands food, and then my butt says, ‘Shut up!’”

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