“You think I’d trade that for some hallway blowjob?”I ask, shaking my head.“You think I’d throw away everything we’ve done for a shot at easy?”
I press my forehead to hers, needing her to feel every part of me.Every ounce of this need, which has clawed its way into my chest since the second she walked into my fucking life.
“You’re not easy,” I murmur.“You’re everything.”
Tears burn at the corners of her eyes.“Reece—” she stops herself, swallows, and takes a deep breath.
“Say yes, Red,” I whisper, my breath grazing her lips.“Just say yes.”
I see the war in her eyes, the way she’s weighing the cost of giving me her heart when she’s still not one hundred percent sure I won’t shatter it.
Her fingers lift, brushing my jaw with a touch so damn gentle it undoes me.“If I say yes...and you hurt me...”Her voice breaks.“That’s it, Reece.”
My heart stutters.I fucking feel it.The weight of her trust.The risk she’s about to take.
“I won’t hurt you.I swear to you, Red.I would rather die.”
She studies me and then nods.
“Yes.”
The word sounds soft and shaky.
I fucking lose it.I pull her mouth to mine and kiss her with everything I’ve got.Deep.Desperate.A little wild.My hand fists in her hair as I pull her closer.
I pull back just enough to breathe against her lips.“I’m the happiest motherfucker on the planet right now.”
Her laugh is perfect.“Don’t make me regret this.”
“You won’t,” I promise.“You won’t even remember life before me.”
She rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling now.
Chapter 23
Reece
I’malreadyleaningagainstthe brick wall near the school lot when Red pulls in.Her small car coughing its way into the lot as if it’s just as nervous as she is.
She texted me three times already this morning.
Sam: Are we doing the right thing?
Sam: Maybe we should wait.
Sam: People are gonna talk.
I didn’t reply.Not because I didn’t care.She was already lost in her thoughts, twisting herself in knots, dissecting every damn message.The last thing she needed was a text from me to make her overthink.What she really needed was me.
Right here.
Showing the fuck up and making it clear I’m not walking away from this.
I watch as she pulls into the space, kills the engine, and sits there for a second, hands still gripping the wheel.Her hair’s caught in the light, the sun turning it to wildfire.All fire, trouble, and temptation.
When she finally steps out, her eyes scan the lot and lock onto me.
She pauses for a breath, then another.
