I slide a hand into her hair and angle her head so I can kiss her deeper. She moans into my mouth when I let my tongue slide against hers. She tastes like her with a hint of sweet soda.
With my chest pressed to hers, I can feel how fast her heart is beating. How much I affect her. How what we share is something more than just attraction.
The door opens, and Avery breaks the kiss to look and see who entered. Ivy stands there, a look of shock on her face. “Um. I just forgot my cell in my seat.”
“We weren’t doing anything,” Avery quickly says.
“Bull.” Ivy smiles slyly. “But you should probably stop because, if we don’t get out there, Dustin will come looking for us and wonder why you two are standing in a dark hallway with kiss-swollen lips.”
Ivy walks past us in search of her phone, and we stand there, staring at one another. I can’t stand the silence, the words left unsaid. I break it. “You may be imperfect in your eyes, but you’re perfect in mine. I’m begging you to let me in, Avery. Flaws. Walls. Pain. I want it all. Don’t walk out those doors pretending that we didn’t make some progress. Don’t let me go. Don’t shove me out. Don’t close me off.”
Her bottom lip wobbles. “I like you, Reid.”
“I like you too.”
She looks at the door. “Just give me time to learn how to trust again.”
I close the distance, cup her cheek, and press a soft kiss to her eyebrow. “Luckily, I have all the time in the world.”
And then I leave her waiting for Ivy while I head out of the theater and toward the lobby. I blow out an unsteady breath, hoping like hell she meant what she said.
CHAPTER 17
AVERY MOORE
“I’m going to work.Do you need anything?” Ivy asks, popping into my doorway. “I can stop somewhere on the way back.”
She’s pulling her hair into a tight bun, the bun she always wears when she works at the diner, claiming it keeps it from dipping into unwanted syrup. It makes her face look sharper, too, but I’ve noticed that Dustin likes it when her hair is down. He always toys with it when he’s over.
I’ve often fantasized about what it would be like to have Reid play with my hair that way.
I haven’t seen or heard from Reid since last night, which is fine. Sort of. I miss him. I miss the way his hand held mine, the way he kissed me, and the way he spoke to me. And I was right about the walls returning once I stepped out of that theater and back into reality. However, they’re not as strong as they once were.
“No,” I say, looking back at my notebook.
“Not even a midnight snack?” She does that single eyebrow raise again, and again, I wonder how the hell she does that.
I shake my head. When Reid grabbed onto my waist last night, I was keenly aware of my weight. Neil would have neverheld me like that at this size. Hell, Neil never kissed me like that either, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still have insecurities just because Reid appears to be different.
“Not even a milkshake?”
I laugh and shake my head. “I’ll be fine, but thanks though.”
She eyes me skeptically, and I try not to shrivel under her gaze. I always ask for a snack, so she’s probably wondering why tonight is different. “If you’re sure.”
“I am,” I say firmly, picking up my textbook again.
“Okay.” She shrugs and then points at me. “You look adorable by the way.”
I look down at my too-big shirt and loose pajama shorts with flowers printed all over them. I’m not wearing a bra or underwear either, but she doesn’t need to know that.
With an amused expression, I look back up at her. “I tried so hard for this look,” I say sarcastically. “I’m glad my hard work paid off.”
She shrugs. “You just look more relaxed than you have in a long time. Is this…does this have anything to do with the kiss I saw last night?”
“Nope,” I lie.
“You’re such a terrible liar,” she says, laughing. “I’m glad to see the old you coming back.”
