How to speak, breath, move, what my favorite sport was or why we stood in the hallway with his hands on my face.
“Un,” I mumbled, not really saying a word. “Um what—”
“I’d be lucky to sleep with you. The luckiest. You’re… I can’t even…” He closed his eyes, struggling to get words out.
My pea-brain was repeating the wordsI’d be lucky to sleep with youover and over and over like what did that even mean? Should I be mad or happy about this? Confused, sure, butwhat?“Luca.”
“You’re gorgeous. I think, possibly, when I said what I did this morning in front of Callum, you thought that I didn’t think you were the most beautiful thing on this green earth. You are, by the way. Like, perfection. Stunning. Like, if I didn’t have to worry about my grandma or football or Dean, I’d be doing whatever I could to score a date with you. You’re a goddess, Lorelei, and it bothered me all damn day to know you probably thought the opposite.” His breath hit my face, and he lowered his hands, stepping back and nodding to himself. “I needed to tell you that. I can’t get my words right with you.”
“Whoa.” I blinked, a lot.
“So, we’re good now?” He tilted his head to the side, like a cute little dog.
“Good?” I laughed, utter chaos raging inside me like a pig loose during a state fair. “You say that to me and ask if we’re good? Luca Monroe, that was quite a speech.”
“I don’t know if you’re laughing because we are totally good or laughing out of anger. I know people do that sometimes.”
“I’m confused, that’s it. I thought… you look and speak to me like I’m incredibly annoying. Then you say I’m a goddess? How drunk are you?”
“Medium drunk, and you are a goddess.” His mouth opened, and he sucked in a breath as he reached up and took a piece of my hair between his two fingers. “It’s the hair, maybe. Or your eyes. Or lips. All of it.”
“You think I’m hot.”
“Yes, but Jesus Christ, I need to work on my compliments if you’re still unsure of what I’m saying.” He let go of my hair and stared down at me, his tongue wetting the center of his bottom lip. “I’ve thought you were the prettiest thing since I met you freshman year.”
“Freshman year?” What… was I drunk? Was this a dream? The time he wentughat me?
“Am I making this worse?”
“Luca.” I held up a hand, my mind sprinting a marathon to comb though all his words. This was front page news. Huge. Massive. “I thought you disliked me. This is the opposite.”
“Nothing will ever happen between us. I think… yes, that’s why I kept my thoughts to myself. Until now. Damn shots of Patrón. I’m defriending Callum. Only choice here.” He mumbled something else about our third hallmate before his eyes heated. “I will never act on this attraction. I can’t. Football is my life. Dean… he’d kill me. Do you understand? No matter what happens, we will be nothing more than friends.”
I nodded, not really having a choice. The intensity on his face and the way the air seemed to thicken around us had my heart crashing against my ribcage. Did I want to do something about this attraction? I didn’t think so. Hell, he played football, and I wasdonewith athletes and their bullshit. But that was before he made the best declaration of lust I had ever heard. The most Eric ever said wasmm you’re hot.Goddess? Shit. Almost had me forgetting my “no athlete” rule.
Say that! Reassure him.He seemed worried as hell with all the glaring and unblinking eyes. “I agree,” I said, my cheeks blazing with heat. “I’ll never be with an athlete again anyway. I want to come first and with you I never would.”
His nostrils flared. “Right. Good. We agree.”
“Yes.”
“Excellent.”
We stared, neither one of us moving as the awkwardness weighed me down. In the silence, I couldn’t help but admire his strong nose and full lips. He’d shaved, and his clean jaw was sharp, flexed, andwhat the hell am I doing?
“Good night, Monroe.”
“Yeah.” He blinked, then turned so fast he almost ran into the wall before disappearing into his bedroom.
I stood there, frozen, lost in my own head at what had just happened. The confession, the newfound fact he thought I was gorgeous…no.I shook my head. I would never date a football dude, let alone someone on Dean’s team. I’d learned that lesson the hard way, and just because Luca lit something up inside me, it didn’t mean shit.
If anything, it solidified I had to protect myself even more. I would just end up getting hurt. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice… well, that’d be on me, and I didn’t have time to be heartbroken again. I had an internship to score.
CHAPTERTWELVE
Luca
All of us had our own custom cure for a hangover that we swore by, but there was no fucking way Dean’sspicy foodworked. Just smelling the greasy hashbrowns coated in hot sauce made my stomach churn.
