Page 49 of Hot and Bothered
“Oof,” Evan said. “You got me right in the face.”
I sat up, alarmed, and saw him lounging next to me, an amused smile on his lips even as he rubbed at his nose.
“I’m sorry!” I winced in sympathy. “Does it hurt much?”
“Nah.” Evan handwaved the question away. “You’ve got a weak left hook.”
I leaned forward and placed a kiss on the tip of his nose anyway.
“There,” I said. “I’ve kissed it better.”
He caught me around the waist and drew me down for a proper kiss. I sunk into his embrace, molding my body against his.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” I said. “A little sore, but that’s to be expected.”
He ran a finger along my collarbone.
“I’ve left you a bunch of hickies.” He didn’t sound apologetic in the slightest. “You might want to wear a scarf or something when you go out.”
On the one hand, I didn’t care if everyone knew about me and Evan. I wanted to shout it from the rooftops, in fact. But on the other hand, I wanted to keep my love life — or my sex life, to be more precise — private. Knowing I was in a relationship was one thing. Knowing exactly where Evan had put his mouth on my body was way too TMI for my liking.
“Good thing I don’t have another photoshoot today,” I said. “It would have been perfectly obvious what we were up to last night.”
“Lizzy’s the one who gave you that sexy little nightgown thing,” Evan said. “I think she already knows exactly what we got up to last night.”
My face burned, and I groaned as I buried my head in Evan’s chest.
“At least Lizzy will probably be discreet,” I said. “I doubt she’ll tell anyone what she gave me, or what she expected the outcome to be.”
He ran a soothing hand down my naked back.
“Are you worried what people will think?” he asked.
“Not really. Or, maybe. Yes. I don’t know.” I flopped back onto the mattress. “I know it’s stupid, but…” I tried to think of an example to explain what I was feeling. “You remember that one movie, that rom-com? The girl was upset right after the wedding, and her new husband asked why. She was sort of a daddy’s girl, and she said it was because now her father would know she’s not a virgin. And it was a funny scene because she hadn’t been a virgin for years. But she was upset because after her wedding night, now her father would know for sure.”
Evan lifted himself up on his elbow to lean over me.
“So you’re worried everyone’s going to know you had sex?” His lips twitched, and I could tell he was holding back laughter.
I pursed my lips and hugged a pillow to my chest.
“I told you it sounds stupid,” I said.
Evan took the pillow out of my hands and scooted over to replace it with himself, letting me snuggle down into his arms.
“You’re allowed to have whatever feelings you want,” Evan said. “Everyone reacts to their first time in different ways.”
“How did you react to your first time?” I asked.
“Like a deer in headlights,” he admitted. “It had been with a girl I’d had a crush on forever. It took some fumbling around, but we figured it out. Afterward, I was so worried I’d do something or say something to ruin the moment that I laid there frozen, too afraid to do anything.”
“Yikes.”
“It turned out okay,” he said. “We dated for a few months before breaking up. That’s how high school relationships go, you know?”
“No, I don’t know,” I said. “My high school was girls only.”
