“I told you,” I said, trying to keep my voice casual. “I think you’re cute.”
“But you could have anyone,” he persisted, those blue eyes fixed on mine with surprising intensity. “You’re Silver Erestolal. Half the campus would drop everything for a chance with you.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Been asking around about me, have you?”
“No!” he protested, then hesitated. “Well, maybe a little. My roommate wouldn’t shut up when I mentioned we were getting coffee.”
I couldn’t help but grin at that. “And what did this roommate have to say?”
Ash’s blush deepened. “Just that you’re... popular. And that you’re well known for your… uh…talents.”
Now that was intriguing.
“My talents?” I asked, leaning forward. “What talents? Like football or something?”
“Uh… no. Not exactly.”
But I wasn’t giving up. “Tell me,” I urged. “I never get to hear my reputation secondhand like this.”
“Okay,” Ash sighed. “He said you have a talent for getting people in bed. Like anyone you want.” He held up his hands in mock defense. “I’m not slut shaming you either. I just… I didn’t know that was your thing. I figured it was sports, but then he started talking about a dryad and a werewolf and a vampire and?—”
“Alright,” I laughed, feeling a little self-conscious. I didn’t need my entire body count recounted for me. “I get it. I’m the campus slut.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that!” Ash replied, jumping to my defense. “Really! I… I kind of admire that. I’m jealous. Hell, I’ve never even kissed anyone before?—”
He suddenly clapped his hand over his mouth, his face turning beet red. I froze, watching as mortification spread across Ash’s face. His eyes widened in horror at what he’d just admitted.
“Never been kissed?” I asked softly, trying to keep any hint of judgment out of my voice. The idea seemed almost impossible to me. How could someone as cute as Ash have never been kissed?
“Please forget I said that,” he mumbled, looking like he wanted the shadows to swallow him whole. “It’s embarrassing.”
“It’s not embarrassing,” I said, reaching across the table to touch his hand. That familiar electric spark jumped between us again. “Everyone starts somewhere.”
Ash stared at our hands, his breathing slightly uneven. “Yeah, but most people start in high school. Not when they’re twenty.”
I studied his face, seeing the genuine vulnerability there. This wasn’t just embarrassment, it was shame. Like he thought there was something wrong with him.
“Hey,” I said, squeezing his hand gently. “Look at me.”
Those sapphire eyes reluctantly met mine.
“There’s no timeline for these things. And there’s definitely nothing wrong with you.”
“Easy for you to say,” he muttered. “You’ve probably been kissing people since you were twelve.”
I laughed. “Fourteen, actually. And trust me, it was awful. I had no idea what I was doing.”
That earned me a small smile. “Really?”
“Gods, yes. I was a disaster. Practically drowned the poor guy in spit. He almost got pneumonia.” I shook my head at the memory. “My point is, experience isn’t what matters. It’s finding the right person to have those experiences with.”
Ash’s eyes searched mine, like he was trying to figure out if I was messing with him. “Is that why you asked me out? Because you want to be my first... experience? Are you like a virgin hunter or something?”
“What? No!” I pulled back, genuinely surprised by his question. “I asked you out because there’s something about you that I find... intriguing.”
“Intriguing?” he repeated skeptically. “That’s a polite way of saying weird.”
“No, it’s not,” I insisted. “When we touch, there’s that spark. You said you feel it too.”
