"You never complain when you joinmein the shower,Wingrove." Wiggling my eyebrows at him, he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling my body closer to his, and I forget for a moment that things between us are about to change.
"That’s because I knowyoulike it. Who am I to change how you do things?" he says as he buries his face in the crook of my neck, breathing me in before pulling himself away.
"Are we okay?"
My breath hitches in my throat at his question, catching me off guard while his eyes search mine, desperate for answers. I can see the pain behind them. Like he needed to ask for clarity, but he doesn’t know if he wants to hear the answer.
"What do you mean?" I ask, heart slamming against my ribs. I don’t know how they don’t break. I had a feeling he suspected my whereabouts last night, but I didn’t think it would make him worry aboutus.
Of course, he’s worried.
He thinks I spent the night with my ex-boyfriend.
How could I be so stupid?
"Did you decide to go back to him?" Fear is written all over his body, waiting for my response. I never told a soul that I was with Austin. Not even Jenna. But Harley didn’t need to be told. He figured it out all on his own.
I hate that he thinks I would even consider going back to Austin.
That his trust in me has been questioned.
"Because if you’ve decided to go back to him, Cassandra, I need to know. Before I get too deep in this, and I can’t find my way back to the surface." His hands drop by his sides, releasing me from his warm, comforting grip, leaving us both standing naked and vulnerable in the shower while he waits for my reply.
And there it is.
My first name.
I was right.
I hate it.
"Do you really think I would go back to him?" I ask, wrapping my arms across my chest to cover myself from something he’s seen every single day for the last few weeks.
"I don’t know what to think," he admits as he turns to turn off the water, leaving the space silent and now even colder than it was moments ago.
There isn’t a hint of anger in his voice, but the pain is impossible to miss.
"I know you’re not ready to tell me what happened and please know that I will never force you to, but I just need to know. Isthis—" He gestures his hand between us. "Are we over?" he asks as his eyes glaze over.
My heart shatters seeing him so vulnerable.Even though the water is off, neither of us has moved even an inch. Our feet remain firmly planted, still at arm’s length from each other, and goosebumps all over the both of us.
"No. We are far from over, Harley." I slowly bridge the gap between us, and he lets me. "I meant it when I said I was all in," I say, placing a kiss on the corner of his lips as he lets out a shaky breath.
"That’s all I needed to hear."
Slamming his mouth down on mine, it feels like our first kiss all over again.
Right here, right now, I promise myself to live completely in this moment.
I refuse to think about the last twelve hours and how I’m holding onto information that will changeeverything.
thirty-six
Harley
Refusing to resist herany longer, I glide my hands from her hips and up her back before grabbing a fist full of her hair. She tilts her head to the side, giving me better access to her neck, and her whole body shudders at the feeling.
"Mine," I whisper in her ear before I kiss her mouth again, down her jaw, trailing back down her neck. I make my way to her tits, showing them both equal attention, nipping and sucking at each peak as a subtle moan escapes from her throat.
