Page 64 of Nerdelicious
“Youarelaughing!” I accuse.
His head lifts, his smile wider than the Texas sky.
“You have a dimple.” I touch his cheek with the tip of my finger. His smile gets somehow bigger.
“It’s huge. But of course it is, it has to match the rest of you. I bet I could stick my fist in that thing.”
He’s laughing again, a strange, rusty hum, and it makes me laugh, too, and then his hands are on my shoulders and he’s capturing my laugh inside of his.
And just like every time we’ve kissed, my whole body ignites with restless need, yearning for more. And the affliction must get Beast, too, because our mouths crash together with ever-increasing aggression. It’s like a competitive sport to see who can kiss who with more enthusiasm.
But he never attempts to push it further.
When I reach for his zipper, he brings the kiss to an end, pecking me one last time before leaning back slightly. His lips are swollen and his eyes are hooded with unmet desire.
“Why are we stopping?”
He holds up a finger and reaches for his phone, which has fallen onto the floor. I have to hold on to his shoulders while he leans over and stretches to search. Settling my head closer, I nibble his neck a little. He shivers and comes back with his phone. I straighten, moving back to give him room but my head hits the ceiling. He helps shift me off his lap, then tugs me against his side.
I want to make sure we’re exclusive. You can’t be teaching anyone else how to kiss.
“I’m not the one with a cute blonde vying for my attention at Bodean’s every night,” I grumble.
He smiles.
I halfheartedly hit him in the shoulder. “It’s not funny.”
So I’m your boyfriend now?
“I... yes? Is that what you want?”
He nods.
I bite my lip. Grace isn’t going to be happy about this. “Are we telling the others? Granny? Grace?”
Why wouldn’t we?
“Grace told me to not get involved with you.”
He nods again, unsurprised.She’s worried about you leaving.
“Yeah, she loves you. She’s protecting your heart.” I put my hand on his chest, just to feel the warmth and strength and beat of it under my fingers.
He shakes his head no.
“No?”
He types.She might be worried about me, but she will hurt when you leave, too.
“Ouch,” I say. I haven’t even considered how Grace might feel about my departure. “I don’t want to hurt her. Or you or anyone.”
Sometimes it can’t be helped. Life is pain, highness.
I smile at that. “Nice reference.” I lean back, needing more than a few inches of space to process this conversation. The thought of leaving is akin to gripping the sharp edge of a blade on purpose. A self-inflicted wound not easily managed. And it’s only going to get worse.
Beast runs a finger down my cheek, then holds up his phone.
It won’t be goodbye. It will be see you later.
