Page 96 of A Little Crush
“The opportunity to touch you already makes me feel like the luckiest bastard on the planet.”
It’s a compliment, but it’s also only a half-truth. I can see it in his eyes. “But I’m not allowed to touch you?” I challenge.
“You can touch me anytime you want, though I have a feeling we’ve already pushed our luck in the parking lot.”
I glance around the area, grateful it’s still relatively empty even if the man makes a good point. “Then you should take me somewhere,” I decide.
“Rore.”
“Jax.”
“I don’t want to pressure you.”
“You’re not.”
“I’m not?”
“No, you’re not, I promise.”
He doesn’t look convinced, but he does cave, muttering, “Good.”
“Good,” I toss back at him.
“So, now that we both agree I’m not pressuring you…” His lips curve up on one side as if he’s fighting back his smirk. “I believe you mentioned you’re a terrible liar.”
Fighting my blush—because I most definitely am a terrible liar—I hold onto my sass and say, “And?”
“And it got me curious…have you told anyone? About me and you?”
I shake my head.
“Not a soul?” he pushes. “Not even…Tatum?”
Tatum? Did he really have to call me out so blatantly? I mean, it’s Tatum. Of course, I told her. Unable to hide the truth, my face bunches, and I roll my head forward, letting my light hair block me from his view.
With a bellow of laughter, he says, “I knew it!”
I smack his chest. “Oh, shush. You know nothing?—”
He grasps my wrist. “I know I like you.”
He likes me?
Helikesme.
He likesme.
My stupid heart skips a beat as his confession hangsbetween us, and I fight to hold his gaze. Because I get it now. The difference. When I was younger, he never looked at me like this. I mean, he looked at me. But before, it was so…platonic, I guess? Genuine, definitely. But now, there’s a sprinkle of something else. Something more. Something that turns the butterflies into a giant albatross, and I can’t help but feel…lucky. Lucky that, even though it was a bumpy as hell ride, we still somehow found ourselves here. Like this. Now, I’m not stupid enough to believe he’s going to propose next week or something. We haven’t even voiced our wants and needs for whatever this is. But that sprinkling of actualintimateinterest? The fact it matches my own thoughts and feelings that I’ve kept buried for as long as I can remember? I like it. I like it a lot.
“Nothing to say, Beautiful?” Jaxon prods. “Do I need to go back on the whole not pressuring you part? Am I coming on too strong?”
“Not at all,” I rush out. “Just trying to piece together past Jaxon and current Jaxon and the way you’re looking at me right now.”
His gaze softens even more. “And how am I looking at you?”
“Like you like me,” I answer.
The same curve of his lips spreads over his handsome features. “I mean, I did just tell you I like you.”
