Page 71 of The Hearts We Fumble
Now I know better.
“And those nights at your house,” he murmurs, pulling me back to the present with his quiet confession. “When Colter and I would hang out while your mom was at work, watching movies in the living room with the lights off? Most of the time, I wasn’t even paying attention to the movie. I was staring at you.”
Emotion knots in my throat, an ache deep in my chest from all the time lost—time I spent convinced I was the only one feeling this way.
I slide across the seat, closing the distance between us, wrapping my arms around his neck as my fingers graze his jaw.
“All this time, I thought you didn’t feel the same,” I whisper. “Thought you really did just see me as a little sister.”
His gaze darkens, his grip tightening on my waist. “Never.” His voice is rough, raw. “Protective, maybe. But never in a brotherly way.”
He kisses me before I can respond, his lips pressing against mine with a hunger that steals my breath. I melt into him, my fingers tangling in his hair as he deepens the kiss.
The voices in the parking lot grow louder, snapping me back to reality. I force myself to pull away, though every part of me protests.
“I should probably get going,” I murmur, reaching for my backpack on the floorboard.
“I’ll walk you to class.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I say, but I don’t make a move to stop him.
“What, is it against the rules to walk a friend to class?” He smirks, but there’s an edge to his voice.
I exhale, knowing exactly where this is going. “No, but we both know how things get twisted around here. If someone sees us together, it’s bound to get back to Colter—and who knows what version of the truth will actually make it to him.”
Zane shrugs, completely unfazed. “I don’t care, honestly.”
And the way he says it? Like nothing—not the rumors, not Colter, not anyone—could change the way he feels.
It does something to me.
He says it so matter-of-factly that it almost knocks the air out of my lungs. This is the same Zane Kinnick who spent years keeping me at arm’s length, making me believe I was always just out of reach.
And now? Now, he’s standing in front of me, looking at me like I’m his, like he has no intention of letting go.
It’s almost impossible to wrap my head around how fast everything has shifted between us.
“You really don’t care if Colter finds out?” I ask, searching his face for any trace of hesitation.
He shrugs. “It doesn’t have to be a big deal unless we make it one, right?”
I nod slowly, trying to absorb the ease with which he’s handling this—us.
“Besides,” he adds, smirking, “it’s not like Colter wasn’t sneaking around with his ex-teammate’s sister when he and Ava first got together. Seems a little hypocritical if you ask me.”
I let out a short laugh. “Okay, you have a point there.”
Without another word, he reaches for the door handle and climbs out of the car, rounding the front before I can even process what he’s doing. When he reaches my side, he opens my door and extends a hand, waiting for me to take it.
Something about the way he does it—so effortlessly, like it’s second nature—sends a warm, dangerous feeling curling in my chest.
He doesn’t let go of my hand as we walk into Vander Hall. Not until we reach the main corridor, where a steady stream of students filters through the hallway. That’s when he shifts, guiding me toward a quiet alcove just before the entrance to the student center.
“You want me to meet you here after class?” he asks.
I hesitate, glancing around at the passing faces, at the way a few people glance in our direction, their eyes skimming over him, then me, lingering on the space between us.
Zane notices.
