Page 24 of His Reckless Freshman

“Yeah, she’s a talented lady.” Kieran stands beside me, handing me a glass of water.

“Oh, thank you.” I smile at him and take a quick sip before tentatively inching closer to his bed.

“I love the colors. It’s so bright and cheerful and—oh wow, look at your ceiling!”

I rush to the edge of his bed to take a better look. The entire area above his mattress is covered with fairy lights that must twinkle like stars when they’re turned on. Fake red roses are threaded between them. It’s absolutely stunning.

“That is so cool. Did you do this yourself?”

“Yeah.” His soft laughter is kind of proud and totally adorable. “Well, my cousin mostly.” He flops down onto the bed to stare up at it. “I love waking up to this. I love falling asleep to it. Here, I’ll show you.” He jumps back up, taking my water glass and setting it next to my purse before guiding me to his bed. “Lie down.”

Giving him a twitchy smile, I ignore the nerves scattering through me and stretch out onto his bed.

It’s so comfy; the duvet underneath me is soft and delicious. I can’t help a contented little sigh.

Pulling the skirt part of my dress back down to my knees, I gaze up at the magical ceiling, then gasp in delight when he turns on the lights. They sparkle like diamonds, little flickers of magic between those rosebuds.

“It must have taken her so long to do this.”

“I helped, but yeah…” Kieran laughs and switches off the other lights, which makes the ceiling even more beautiful. “It took us hours. Worth it, though.”

He lies down beside me, reaching for my hand and threading our fingers together. My insides start to dance. This is too amazing for words! His thumb brushes over the back of my hand again as his voice turns to a husky whisper. “I really wanted to show you this.”

“I’m glad you did.” My insides quake, butterflies scouring me when he rolls to his side so he can look at me.

Resting his hand on my stomach, he splays his fingers over that swarm of butterflies, and I can’t help a soft, giddy giggle.

He smiles. “You really are something else, Jolie. I love your smile and your sweet laugh. Ever since you walked into the office, I’ve been wanting to ask you out.”

“No, you haven’t.” I giggle again. “You didn’t even know I existed.”

“I did. I just… was trying not to be too forward. But you made it impossible to keep ignoring you. And then we bumped into each other on the street, and I knew it was meant to be. Hanging out with you is just so easy.” He shuffles closer, his breath fanning over my cheek. “I like talking to you. I like watching you smile. I like how soft your skin is and how good you smell.” Gently nudging his nose into my cheek, he whispers, “Is it okay if I kiss you?”

“Yes.” I breathe the word more than say it, spinning toward him and wrapping my arm around his shoulders. Carina’s gentle warning evaporates the second his lips touch mine. His tongue slips into my mouth, and I am gone. He feels so good!

I love his hand squeezing my waist, the way his body shifts, his leg tangling between mine as we get caught up in this passionate moment.

I’ve never really had a passionate moment before. I wonder what it’d be like to do more than just kiss. My body zings with the idea. Am I ready for that?

I shouldn’t.

My parents, my pastor, my teachers—they all went on and on about how this sort of thing is sacred and only supposed to happen between a husband and a wife. But I’ve always been curious. And Caroline certainly hasn’t followed that path. She started sleeping around in college because she wanted to experience that side of herself… and maybe I want that too.

I mean, I think.

I’m not sure.

If my parents ever find out about this, they will kill me.

They won’t find out. You don’t have to tell them about any of this. Just stop thinking so hard and go with it. Spread your wings!

“You feel so good,” Kieran murmurs, his lips trailing across my cheek and down to my neck.

My brain’s in chaos, trying to figure out whether I should just close my eyes and let myself experience whatever this might end up being or if I should politely push him away and tell him I’m not ready.

“I want to touch you. Can I touch you?” His head pops up to check my face, and I swallow, bobbing my head without even knowing what I’m doing.

I am ready. At least, I want to be.