Chapter Fourteen
Lark
I woke up staring at the ceiling.
For the longest time, I couldn’t figure out why I felt so...different.
Then it hit me. Oliver kissed me.
“Damn,” I whispered to the empty room.
I rolled onto my side and hugged my pillow.
Who would’ve thought? Certainly not me.
When I first got to the clubhouse, I would’ve bet every dollar in my bank account that Oliver would spend the rest of our time together glaring at me while making sure I didn’t wander off and get kidnapped.
Instead, somewhere along the way, the quiet biker with more tattoos than words had completely worked his way under my skin.
It wasn’t just because he was ridiculously attractive.
Okay, that helped a lot.
The tattoos.
The broad shoulders.
The beard that somehow always looked perfectly scruffy.
Yeah. That was definitely the cherry on top.
But it was everything else that kept sneaking up on me. The way he always waited outside my door. The way he watched every room before I walked into it. How he never talked over me. How he somehow always knew when I needed help before I asked.
How he’d smile just enough to make me feel like I’d won the lottery every single time.
I groaned and buried my face in the pillow. “You’ve got it bad, Lark.”
There was no denying it anymore.
I liked Oliver.
A lot.
It made me ridiculously happy.
I finally forced myself out of bed, showered, threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, brushed my hair into a messy ponytail, and slipped on my shoes.
One last glance in the mirror. “Don’t be weird.” I nodded at my reflection. “I can do that.” Five seconds later I laughed. “No, I can’t.”
I took a deep breath and opened my bedroom door.
Just like every morning, Oliver was there. He leaned against the opposite wall with his arms folded across his chest.
The second he saw me, he pushed away from the wall. “Morning.”
“Morning.” I closed my door behind me. “You know...” I trailed off.
“What?”
“You could knock.”
His eyebrows pulled together.
“So you don’t have to stand out here waiting.”
“I don’t want to rush you.”
I blinked. “...What?”
“I don’t know how long you take to get ready.”
“So your solution is to stand in the hallway?”
He nodded once. “Seems easier.”
I rolled my eyes. “I never know if you’re being serious or not.”
“I usually am.”
“I know.”
I stepped closer before I could second-guess myself. My hand rested lightly against his chest. Warm. Solid. His heartbeat thumped steadily beneath my palm.
Neither of us moved.
I looked up into his blue eyes. “About last night...”
He waited.
“Was that something...” I trailed off.
His head tipped slightly. “Something what?”
I bit my bottom lip. “Something we could revisit?”
He didn’t answer.
He kissed me.
No hesitation. No thinking.
One second I was looking up at him. The next, his mouth was on mine, warm and certain like he’d been waiting for me to ask.
My hand slid from his chest around to the back of his neck.
His hands found my waist, and before I realized what he was doing, he’d gently backed me against the hallway wall.
The kiss deepened.
Slowly.
Patiently.
There wasn’t any rush.
His thumb brushed against my side and I melted into him.
I’d kissed guys before. None of them had ever kissed me like this.
Like they actually wanted me. Like they couldn’t get close enough.
I smiled against his mouth and he smiled back. That somehow made my heart beat even faster.
When we finally pulled apart, we were both breathing a little harder.
Neither of us stepped away.
I looked at him for a second before laughing quietly. “So...”
“So?”
“I feel like we should probably kiss more often.”
One corner of his mouth lifted. “I could make time.”
I laughed. “I was trying to be romantic.”
“I know.”
“You kind of ruined it.”
“I usually do.”
I shook my head. “You are impossible.”
“So I’ve been told.”
I leaned forward and brushed one more quick kiss against his lips. “I still like you.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“For you?”
“For you.”
I laughed again. “I think I’ll survive.”
His expression softened. “Breakfast.”
Reality crashed back in. “Oh.”
“Then work.”
I sighed dramatically. “I suppose being responsible is important.”
“It usually is.”
I bumped his shoulder. “Fine.”
Things had changed.
I didn’t know exactly what Oliver and I were now, but whatever it was, I liked it.
Together, we headed toward the common room. The smell of coffee hit me before we even rounded the corner.
I poured myself a mug and then reached into the cabinet for a bowl. I had just started pouring cereal when Ever and Jude came down the hallway.
Ever looked at me once. Then again.
Then she slowly smiled.
Uh-oh.
She walked right over while Jude wandered toward the coffee pot. “I was really tired last night,” she whispered.
I looked up innocently. “Were you?”
“Mmhmm.”
She leaned closer. “And I thought I saw you guys kiss.”
I nearly dropped the cereal box.
“But,” she continued, “I figured my eyes were just tired.” She looked me up and down. “Right now, though?”
I laughed nervously.
“I know for a fact something is going on with you and Oliver.”
I couldn’t help smiling. “You are very observant.” I poured the cereal into my bowl. “But maybe keep it to yourself, yeah?”
She nodded immediately. “I hear you.”
I appreciated that mostly because I didn’t even know what Oliver and I were yet.
We’d kissed.
Twice.
Really good kisses, but that didn’t automatically mean we were dating.
Or together.
Or... anything.
Until Oliver and I actually talked about it, I wasn’t exactly interested in broadcasting it to the entire clubhouse.
“You eating, babe?” Jude called from the coffee pot.
Ever shrugged. “I mean...” She leaned against the counter. “I’m hungry, but I don’t feel like making anything.”
I held up my bowl. “I can make you some cereal.”
She wrinkled her nose. “You know what I really want?”
Oliver folded his arms across his chest while Jude smiled at her. “What, baby?”
“A bacon, egg, and cheese croissant from Kwik Trip.” She clasped her hands dramatically. “And one of those giant vanilla cappuccinos from the machine that makes you wonder if they ever clean it.” She paused. “But if they do clean it, I swear it probably won’t taste as good.”
Jude laughed. “I do need to stop and get gas.”
Ever looked at me.
I looked at Oliver.
“We do have time,” I said.
He gave a small shrug that basically meant whatever you want.
I dumped the dry cereal back into the bag and folded the top over. “I’m down.”
I grabbed my coffee and dumped it back into the coffee pot. “Let’s go.”