From the early morning until our drive back home, my ears have been treated to a symphony of his laughs.
Elijah hums happily, tugging the grilled sandwich from my lips. The long stretch of cheese makes him bounce on his feet with glee. “Ah! See, I’m turning into a grilled cheese connoisseur.”
I chuckle, slurping up the yummy cheesy goodness. “Yup, you’re stealing my role for the house chef.” I wrap my arms around his waist, pulling him.
“I better step up my game. I want you to have a reason to come back home to me.” I laugh, licking a crumb off my finger. Elijah’s eyes follow my tongue.
“I’m pretty sure you don’t need incentives.” He leans in for a kiss.
I swiftly stick the sandwich between us, stopping him from connecting his lips to mine. “Okay, no Birria tacos then.”
His eyes go wide. “Howdareyou?”
I laugh, walking away, putting our empty plates in the dishwasher. He follows close behind me, stealing kisses from me as I go. All morning we’ve been insatiable. It’s like we both know what’s coming and we’re milking every touch and kiss until then.
“Okay, next time, dinner is all you.” Elijah crosses his heart.
I give him a bored look, moving his hair out of his face. “Okay, I’ll whip you up something special.”
“Deal.” He winks.
We share a beat for a moment, just looking at each other’s faces. He moves in close as I hold my breath.
The sun is beginning to set, even though we had planned on separating a few hours ago. Elijah won’t be getting back to his dorms until late, which I don’t like but…
“Don’t tell me to stay. Because I will,” Elijah whispers.
My heart falls. I know he would. I know because he’s told me a million times how close he is to just quitting it all together and staying home with me. But, what type of partner would I be if I said yes to that?
His passion. His dreams. There’s no way I’d be the one getting in the middle of that.
I shake my head. “If I don’t kick you out of this house, you’ll never leave, will you?” I laugh lightly.
Elijah throws his head back and lets out a miserable groan. “You’ll have to drag me out kicking and screaming.” He drops his hands from my waist and heads to the hallway where his weekend bag sits.
“You’ve got everything?” I ask, looking him over as he throws it over his shoulder. “Clothes? Your homework? Everything?”
He sighs, picking up a stack of random pieces of what looks like magazine clippings. All resembling the same deepest blue hue.
“Yup, yup annnnd yup.” He shrugs.
I purse my lips at his sarcasm but take the moment to examine all the pieces in his hand. “I love what your mind can do,” I say aloud. He’s so talented. “Why this shade of blue?” I ask, leaning in to study the images more closely.
His hand cups my chin, making me look him right in the eyes. “It’s my favorite color,” he says softly.
A deep emotion waves through me as I piece it together.
Oh.
I lean in and kiss him deeply, speaking in as much of him as possible.
“I’m not sure what I did to deserve you…but I’m glad I did it,” I say softly, rubbing my thumb against his swollen bottom lip.
Wrapping his hand around my neck, he kisses my forehead.
But the warmth he spreads through my body is quickly taken away when he moves to the door, and starts making his way to his car.
“This is cruel.” He whines, making it even harder for me. I follow him out, stopping at the doorframe to watch him leave. I know if I take a step onto that gravel, I’ll pull him out of the car myself and really show him how crazy I am.
