“Maverick is a pretty good cook,” I tell her.
“Pretty good?” He scoffs. Charli barks at his feet.
“I guess now I have to stay to find out.”
Dakota stands and flips her red hair over one shoulder. “I better go supervise.”
“Worried about me?” Mav asks her.
“Worried that you’ll burn the place down and take my apartment with it.”
The sliding glass door opens and closes, and their voices trail off.
Unfortunately, we only get about ten minutes further into the movie when Adam and Reagan arrive. Everyone’s here now, so at least I can stop waiting for the damn door to open.
I love these guys, girls, too, but they keep smiling at me like I’m their little brother who’s going out on a date for the first time. Fuck that noise. I’m the only one of the group that’s had any semblance of a serious relationship. Ginny and Heath have been together the longest, but even that relationship is new compared to how long I was with Carrie.
I give up trying to keep her to myself, and Sienna doesn’t seem to mind when we all go outside to eat dinner together. The guys keep bringing up random shit—an assist I had last game, that time I stepped in front of a chick about to get run over by a cyclist on campus—that fucking hurt. Adam somehow even remembers when I helped a girl in our freshmen dorm find her lost emotional support gerbil.
What exactly is it about me that screams desperation so loudly my friends feel like they need to sell me on Sienna? Okay, I know why but I’m not some sad case. I’m not them, and I definitely don’t need them to convince some chick I’m good enough.
The girls seem particularly attached to Sienna, and she has to promise them they’ll hang out again before I can steal her away after dinner.
I shut the door in my room and run a hand through my hair. “I’m sorry about that. That was painful. My friends were trying to sell me on you.”
She laughs. “Well, they sold me on them anyway. They’re great.”
“Yeah, most of the time,” I agree.
We sit on top of the comforter on my bed, backs against the headboard. I slide my hand over hers and intertwine our fingers.
“What are you doing after graduation?” I ask. “Going back to Wisconsin?”
She shrugs. “I haven’t figured it out yet. I have an interview tomorrow, actually. Do you have a job yet?”
I nod. “Yeah, my family owns and operates a rink. We do skating lessons, camps, rentals. I’m going to help run it, expand the hockey side of it. Plus, I’ll be closer to my brother as he grows up.”
“Admit it. You want to be his hero instead of Spider-Man.” She leans her shoulder against mine.
“I just want to know him, you know?”
“Yeah.” She sighs. “I definitely get that. Allison, my sister, will be heading off to college in a couple of years, and then who knows where she’ll end up. I miss seeing her, but we text and talk on the phone. My family does these super corny Zoom calls every Monday night.”
“Sounds nice.”
“Yeah, I guess it is.”
I rub my thumb over hers. A simple movement that makes my cock press against the zipper of my jeans.
She tilts her arm, moving mine with it, to look at her watch.
“Do you need to be back at a certain time tonight? I thought we could watch a movie without my roommates interrupting us every two minutes or something else chill. The bus leaves tomorrow at six.”
“No, I was checking my heart rate.” She lets her arm fall slack. “I’m fine,” she adds. “Sometimes, when I’m with you, my chest feels tight like I’ve been pushing my body too hard.”
“Hanging out with me causes you physical pain. Got it.”
Her laughter fills my room, and I lean forward to capture her lips.
My chest feels tight too. Shit. My entire body feels tight.
“Is kissing considered a chill activity?” The breathy words are spoken into my mouth.
Instead of answering, I cup the back of her head and deepen the kiss. Her hand reaches up and rests on my chest. She lightly fists the material in her palm.
Nah, there’s absolutely nothing chill about kissing Sienna.
10
Sienna
We’ve been kissing for the better part of an hour. Just kissing and OMG just kissing Rhett is so not just kissing. He toys with a strand of hair at my neck while he nips at my bottom lip.
“I should probably go,” I say. Leaving is the last thing I want to do, but the longer we keep at this, the harder it’s going to be to go. And I have to go. I’ll hate myself tomorrow if I hook up with him and that turns out to be all he wanted from me.
“Okay.” His hand slides back to lightly grasp my neck and he pulls me in for another scorching hot kiss.
So quickly I’m caught up in him again, and tossing good intentions out the window to keep sucking face. He’s really, really good at it.
He pulls back before I do with a little groan deep in his throat. “Do you need a ride back to the dorm?”
“No, I borrowed Josie’s car.”
“Let me walk you out.” He stands and pulls me with him. The apartment has quieted and none of his friendly roommates or their girlfriends are in the living room as we walk through.
The night is clear and there’s a breeze that whips my hair around my shoulders and into my face.
“Can I see you again?” he asks, swinging our joined hands between us.
“Umm...” I start watching the ground in front of me. I know I’m going to say yes, but I need a few seconds to let all of my fears bounce around in my brain. “When?”
“Whenever you’re free,” he says so casually like he’s willing to rearrange his whole schedule to see me again.
“Great. How about tomorrow night?” I bite back a smile as I glance at him.
He rubs at his jaw. “I’ve got a small conflict tomorrow night.”
We both laugh.
“Are you nervous about the game?” I stop next to the driver’s side door of Josie’s car.
“Yes,” he admits, then changes the topic back. “Go out with me Tuesday night?”
I’m hesitant to make plans with him. I like spending time together. I really like kissing him, but I’m still not sure I truly believe he isn’t a player. Plus, there are only two months of school left. Where can this possibly go? It feels like spending more time with him is the equivalent of signing myself up for a mini life course in dating disasters.
“Text me when you get back to Valley.” I lean forward and press my lips to his, then shift to open the car door before I attack his mouth and say screw the consequences.
He holds on to the top of the door while I get situated in the seat, then shuts me in.
I roll down the window and put it in reverse. “Good luck tomorrow night.”
“Good luck at your interview.”
“You remembered.”
“I know it seems like my brain doesn’t work when you’re around, but I do remember the things you say.”
He steps back and I ease off the brake, letting the car slowly roll backward. “Thanks for tonight. I had fun.”