“Scarier.” He smiles and it’s lazy and crooked and so damn sexy. “Now stop being so sweet so I can drop you off and go ace my quiz, alright?”
“Okay.” I pull away and grab my things, already missing Killian, even though I’ll be seeing him in a couple of hours.
~~~
My stomach is in knots as I sit in the quad, waiting for Killian’s class to let out. I’ve picked the last of my black nail polish off and pulled a loose thread from my sweater, which I’m now wrapping and unwrapping obsessively around my forefinger.
I mentally shake myself for the nerves. This is Killian, my best friend, who I’m totally in love with and deflowered twelve hours ago. I lick my lips, trying and failing to hold back a ridiculously wide grin. I can’t believe this is happening, and more importantly, I can’t believe how excited I am that this is happening.
“Ugh.” Mindy drops down hard beside me at the table, her backpack falling unceremoniously to the concrete and her face lifting to the sky. “Why am I here? I’m so hung over.”
“A wise woman once told me that some of the best nights are followed by the worst days.” Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail, but I can tell it’s still sporting the curls and hairspray from last night. “Maybe a shower would’ve helped.”
“Woke up too late.” She pulls a water bottle from her bag, takes a small sip, and cringes. “Everything still tastes like tequila.”
“Ah…tequila. The romance liquor.”
She grips her head, massaging her temples. “Don’t say it. I can taste it when you say it.” Her head lulls to the side, her oversized sunglasses fixing on me. “What the hell are you smiling for?”
“I’m not smiling.” I so am; I can’t help it. After last night, everything seems…happier.
She rakes her shades up on her head and squints. “The hell you’re not.” She drops her sunglasses back down with a groan. “You and Clifford get busy last night?”
“Gross.” Okay, maybe not everything is happier. “Not even close. We broke up.”
Her eyebrows pop up over her shades. “No kidding?”
“He was such an asshole last night.” Classroom doors open, signaling the end of this class hour. I don’t want to get into the Clifford story when Killian should be here soon. “I’ll tell you about it later.”
“That’s probably best.” She groans. “I think I’m still drunk, so I’d probably forget if you told me now anyway.”
I search the flood of students as they all swarm the quad, grateful that Killian’s taller than the average guy so I’ll be able to find him easily.
The first thing I notice is his white baseball hat with the bold letters UFL in red on the front. He’s not actively searching for me, but his head isn’t down either. He’s strutting with a casual confidence that probably isn’t even obvious to anyone but me. My heart bangs behind my ribs as he approaches. I push up from my seat, and before I’m even fully aware of what I’m doing, I’m speed-walking toward him.
The second his gaze lands on me he grins in this tilted, shy way that speeds my walk to a jog. His smile widens, and when I jump and launch myself into his arms, he catches me without fail.
Long bands of muscle coil around me, lifting me off the ground. I throw my arms around his neck and nuzzle his throat. His skin is warm and smells like his spicy cologne. I drop secret kisses there. He moans and holds me tighter.
“I missed you,” I whisper.
He chuckles and the vibration against my lips is heady. “I can see that.”
I pull away, and he places my feet back on the ground as if I’m made of glass. I grin up at him, and he leans in, pressing his lips to mine. All the heat from this morning flares back to life at the firm touch of his lips. I dig my fingers into the muscles of his neck, and his hands cup my jaw, tilting as he slides his tongue against mine. My leg itches to lift and wrap around his hip, to rub against him like an animal. He must sense my urgency, and his fingers sift into my hair, gripping at the roots as the kiss turns demanding.
“Damn, that’s hot.” The voice of a girl passing by slams us back to reality, and the world around us that had dissolved the second we touched comes back in vivid clarity.
He presses soft kisses to the corners of my mouth and keeps his hold in my hair. His eyelids are lazy and blink slowly open. “I thought PDA wasn’t your thing.”
I’m breathing heavily, willing my pulse to calm and my thighs to stop quivering. “I don’t mind it so much when it’s with you.”
His lips pull into a beautiful smile, and he turns me to tuck me under his arm. That kiss sapping me of strength and coordination, I lean on him for support as he guides me back to the table.
Mindy’s sitting up in her seat, her back not even touching the chair and her lips parted.
“Hey, Mindy.” Killian drops his backpack next to mine.
She says nothing.
He looks between us, confusion pinching his dark brows. “She okay?”