God, his tone was almost tentative.
And so full ofyearning.
“I did. Like, a lot. I mean, I don’t want you to have a bullet lodged in your shoulder. But the fact that you would…that you have…that you don’t mind that much…”
“I don’t mind that much.”
“You know what? Me neither,” she said.
Then hauled him down for a proper kiss.
One that had lips and lots of tongue, and left him grinning like a buffoon.
“If I had known it would have made you look this fucking giddy,” she said, “I would have kissed you in public waaaaay before now. Seriously, it’s weird that you’re this happy about it. Like I’m having déjà vu, only with everything the opposite of how it should be.”
“It’s not just the public thing. I was…thinking…”
“Are you sure that’s wise?” she said. “I heard it gives you wrinkles.”
“I knew you only cared because I’m so pretty. I get ugly and it’s over.”
“I will admit I do like your dewy, youthful skin.”
“So that’s all I am to you. Skin,” Tate replied.
“And ass. Oh my god, your ass. Do you have any idea what it’s like to actually be able to appreciate your ass? I used to tell myself it was like two rhinos wrestling in a sweaty sock.”
“Fuck,whydid you not use that as an insult in high school? That would havedevastatedme,” he said.
She laughed at that. He laughed at it, too.
Though she couldn’t help noticing the emphasis he put on the worddevastated.
Like he meant it, on some level. She had possessed the power to hurt him, even if she hadn’t known it.
“Well, too late now. All I got is drool and two grabby hands.”
“See this. This is what I was just grinning like a lunatic about. You realize we are actually a hundred percent dating right now? Like, we are absolutely together without eight miles of trauma standing between us and huge urges to hide everything and lots of pretending we are not mentally groping each other. This is real. You just said you want to grab my ass. I can totally tell you that I want to grab yours. I can say right out loud: I want to strip you down and kiss every inch of your hot little bod. And nobody cares.”
She nodded in the direction of three girls.
Three girls who had definitely overheard, if their reaction was anything to go by.
“I think afewpeople care. One of the ladies who wanted your number just fainted. Two others gave me gestures that suggest if I don’t let you do that to me I’m an enormous idiot.”
“Yeah, well they never had me create a toxic fog intheirbathrooms.”
“I think they would still find you super sexy.”
“Uh-huh. I bet.”
“But not as sexy asIfind you.”
His head went back at that, eyes rolling up.
“Oh, say that again.”
“I find you sexy.”
