I took one of his hands in mine. He brought his other to my cheek, thumb brushing my skin.
"You may be inexperienced in some ways, but I think you're wiser than most," he said. "I feel like I can tell you things I never talk about. You're not like anyone else I've ever known."
"That last one's a lie," I said. "I'm nothing special."
"They're all true," he echoed.
Nathan moved slowly, inching closer to me, until his lips were a hairsbreadth away from mine. He held himself there, not moving.
I looked up into his eyes. I saw none of his usual teasing, no playfulness. The heat simmering in his gaze was muted. From that deep blue radiated a sincerity I'd rarely seen before.
I brought a hand to the back of his head, burying my fingers in the soft strands. His fingers caressed a trail up my arm, from my inner wrist, along my shoulder, to my collarbone. The entire time, we stared at each other as our breaths mingled.
"Becca," he whispered.
That was all he said. My name. But in that one word I heard a million unsaid things. Because I was thinking them, too. I was feeling them.
I'd been telling the truth when I said no one had ever made me feel the way Nathan made me feel. But I hadn't only been talking about the physical.
Ever since I first met him, Nathan had shown me kindness, a caring and tenderness I never would have expected from someone like him. I felt like I could open up around him. I could let my guard down. I'd never been able to do that with anyone.
And now I knew he felt the same way about me.
But could I rely on him? That was the real question.
A loud noise startled us. The door banged open and flung against the opposite wall. Two guys fell through, landing on the floor as they threw their fists at each other and yelled.
"Break it up!" I heard someone yell from the hallway.
I scrambled away from Nathan, putting distance between us.
I was still all muddled, my mind refusing to admit the things my heart was shouting.
"I'm going to—" I began.
"You don't have to—" he said at the same time.
I flushed and looked away.
"I'm going to get a drink," I mumbled.
I fled the room without looking back.
