Holy hell. This girl is going to ruin me. In the best way possible.
And when she finally pulls back, her lips still brushing mine, I can't stop the stupid, giddy laugh that slips out of me.
"So... my place then?"
She nods, the corner of her mouth curling into a teasing smile. "Mmhmm. I thought my answer was already obvious."
CHAPTER forty-two
CAROLINE
Zach's mouth crashes into mine, and that's it — goodbye oxygen, goodbye rational thought, goodbye self-control.
We're half-lying, half-tangled on his bed, kissing like we've been starved for a month instead of a few days. It's all heat and heartbeat and teeth grazing lips. Every sound he makes is gravel and temptation, and every breath I take feels stolen straight from his lungs.
I've counted every single day like a prisoner marking the walls. Exams, group projects, and zero privacy — pure, torturous abstinence. We've been "good," whatever that means, and at this point I'm convinced good is overrated.
He mutters against my mouth, voice all rough edges. "Missed you."
I laugh breathlessly, tugging him closer. "Missed me or this?"
His grin is sin incarnate. "Both."
The way he says it should be illegal.
His hand slides down to my hip — warm, steady, unfair — and I swear the air goes thin.
Finally. Oh, fucking finally. Tonight, we are doing it!
After the disaster that was prom night—that beautiful, magical, perfect prom he recreated for our first date—I'm ready.
We were supposed to have our first time that night.
After the dancing and the laughter and all those I-love-yous that made my chest feel too small for my heart, we ended up in his room—just us, a movie, and enough tension to power a small city.
I was nervous. Like, heart-doing-cardio nervous.
Halfway through the movie, I told myself to take a breather, snuck off to the bathroom, stared at the mirror, and whispered something like,"Okay, Caroline, chill. It's just Zach. Your boyfriend. Whom you've kissed. A lot. Stop acting like you're about to defuse a bomb."
By the time I'd finally calmed my heartbeat down to a semi-normal human rhythm, I stepped back out ready to seize the moment.
And what do I find?
Zach. Out cold.
Sprawled across the bed, still in his jeans, arm hanging dramatically off the side like he'd just lost a battle with gravity.
Snoring.
I just stood there, blinking at him for a full minute, torn between laughter and homicide.
Part of me wanted to throw a pillow at his face. The other part wanted to tuck him in and kiss his forehead because he looked so stupidly peaceful.
So yeah, that was that. The night of our almost-first-time.
I didn't even get to be disappointed properly because, honestly, the man had been running on fumes. He'd barely slept for days planning that surprise prom just to make me happy.
So, I forgave him for sleeping on me.
