Chapter 9 – Philip
When I arrive at Haley’s dorm Friday evening to pick her up, I park in the nearby visitor lot and walk into her building.
There’s a large group of students gathered in the community room off the lobby.
I see lots of board games spread out across a number of tables.
There’s a big sign posted in the lobby that says:
FRIDAY GAME NIGHT
WELCOME MILTON HALL RESIDENTS!
Dozens of students are gathered around tables loaded with food and drinks, filling their plates and cups. They’re a boisterous group, and it looks like they’re having a good time.
I notice the obnoxious guy from Haley’s chemistry lab seated at one of the tables, in the process of setting up a game of chess. He looks right at me for a long drawn-out moment, a definite scowl on his face.
There’s only one reason why this guy could have a problem with me. Sorry, pal. Find your own girlfriend. Haley’s taken.
I take the elevator up to Haley’s floor.
Normally, I’d take the stairs, but since we’re going out tonight, I don’t want to break a sweat.
Her floor is bustling with students coming and going from each other’s rooms—guys and girls.
I still can’t get over this is a co-ed dorm.
I thought that was only in movies. Music is blasting from a number of rooms. Girls are giggling and guys are hollering. It’s a madhouse.
When I was in college, I lived at home with my parents, mostly to save money.
I was not scholarship material like Haley, and my parents weren’t well off.
I worked part-time jobs to help pay for college, and I was lucky enough to get some free money through grants at my dad’s workplace.
It helped that I attended a small state school that didn’t require students to live on campus.
I missed out on the whole dormitory experience.
When I reach Haley’s room, I knock. The door opens two seconds later, and there she is, beaming up at me. My chest tightens at the sight of her. She looks amazing! I mean, more amazing than usual.
“Hi!” She pulls me into her room and shuts the door. “It’s a bit crazy out there.”
“Well, it’s Friday evening. I guess that’s to be expected.”
I finally get a glance at what Haley is wearing…
gray leggings underneath a sleeveless, thigh-length, forest green dress with a turtleneck collar.
Her long, dark hair is up in a loose bun, with curling tendrils hanging down at her cheeks.
She’s wearing short black boots. She’s even wearing jewelry—gold hoop earrings and a gold chain around her neck with a pearl pendant dangling between her breasts.
She dressed up.
Shit!
I didn’t know I was supposed to get dressed up tonight. I’m in black jeans, a gray Henley, and a pair of chunky black boots. I look decent, but she obviously went to a lot of effort this evening.
I reach for the pearl pendant, gently holding it between my thumb and index finger. “This is pretty.”
She smiles. “It’s my birthstone. Well, June has several birthstones, but my favorite is the pearl. According to Japanese folklore, pearls are made from mermaid’s tears.”
I wrap a long strand of curled hair around my index finger. “Haley, you look beautiful.” I frown. “I’m really underdressed. I didn’t realize—”
“No!” She cups my face. “You look perfect.” She gestures at her outfit. “This is just something I grabbed from my closet. I didn’t have much to choose from.” She smiles as she gestures between us. “Look, we coordinate perfectly. It’s like we planned it.”
I know nothing about clothes and what coordinates with what. My fashion choices extend to jeans versus sweats, or sneakers versus work boots. That’s about it.
“Oh, I almost forgot!” I present the gift bag I’m holding behind my back. I bought the bag today during my lunch break. “Happy first week of college.”
Her eyes widen. “You didn’t have to get me a present, Philip. What is it?”
“You have to open it to find out. Gifts are like that.”
Haley takes the bag from me. “Oh, wow, it’s heavy.
” She sets it on the foot of her bed, opens it, and peers inside at a whole bunch of wadded-up pink tissue paper.
Carefully, she starts removing the padding.
I probably went overboard on the tissue paper, but I wanted to make sure the books were protected during transit.
When she finally makes her way down to the brown paper package, she says, “What’s this?”
“Open it.”
Haley sets the package on her bed, unties the twine, and carefully peels back the brown paper. When she finally realizes what’s in there, she squeals and turns to me. “Oh, my God, Philip! You didn’t!”
“I did.” I step closer.
When she picks up the first book, the look on her face is absolutely priceless.
“I don’t know what to say.” Her eyes start to tear up as she opens the book and gently flips through the pages, stopping to admire the illustrations.
“They’re gorgeous.” She smiles up at me.
“Philip, you shouldn’t have. They’re so expensive. ”
“I wanted to get you something special, something I knew you’d really like.”
“Like? Are you kidding me? I love them. Thank you so much! I’ll treasure them always.” She quickly scans the room as if looking for a spot to put the books. “I need a bookcase.”
“I’ll get you one.”
She frowns. “But there’s no room.”
“Sure there is.” I point to the wall space at the foot of her bed. “There’s room here for a small one. I’ll find something that fits.”
The smile she gives me is everything. I reach out to stroke her soft cheek. Hell, I would move heaven and earth to get this girl anything she wanted.
I finally realize we’re alone in the room. “Melissa’s not here?”
“At the last minute, she decided to go to Game Night with a few of her track buddies. I’m sure you saw the crowd in the community room.”
“It was kind of hard to miss.”
Her eyes are mesmerizing. I think she has a bit of eye shadow on, and her lips are shiny and pink. Lip gloss? I am underdressed. She’s just too nice to say it.
I cup her face in my big bear paws and lean in to kiss her lightly, careful not to mess up her lips. “Mmm.” I smack my lips. “Strawberry.”
“Do you like it?”
“I do.”
She goes up on her toes and whispers in my ear. “If you’re good tonight, I’ll let you lick it off me.”
OMG! Did my sweet, virginal girlfriend just make a sexual inuendo? Kill me now.
Immediately, the image of me tasting every inch of her strawberry-flavored body flashes through my brain. “Sweetheart, you’d better be careful what you say. You’re giving me ideas.”
Her response? She just grins. “Well, we do have this room all to ourselves at the moment.”
“What about the thing at Layla’s?” I’m trying to take the high road here, but she’s making it difficult.
She shrugs. “We have a few minutes.”
That’s all the green light I need. I lean in and press my lips to hers. She sighs as she opens her mouth, drawing me in to a deeper kiss. Her hands grasp my upper arms, her fingers kneading my biceps.
My breath catches. “Did I mention you look gorgeous tonight?” I groan the words against her lips.
“Yes. So do you.”
When she runs her tongue against my upper lip, my partial hard-on jumps ahead to a full-on erection.
Our make-out session has gone from zero to sixty in no time. When I cup her left breast, she moans in response, and that sweet sound goes right to my head, leaving me unable to think clearly. “Hale—”
And then the door opens and Melissa walks in. “Oh! Hi.” Her eyes widen. “I forgot my phone. I’m so sorry—I didn’t mean to barge in on you guys. Again.”
I release Haley and take a step back.
“It’s fine,” Haley says, her breath catching. Her cheeks flush a pretty pink. She grabs her purse off the foot of her bed. “We were just leaving.”
Out in the hallway, I reach for Haley’s hand. “This roommate thing is going to take some getting used to.”
* * *
We arrive at the McIntyre apartment building around six forty-five. I park in my assigned spot in the underground garage, and we take the elevator up to my floor.
Luckily, we’re alone in the elevator. I take the opportunity to draw Haley close and kiss her. It’s mostly a peck on the lips because I don’t want to mess up her lip gloss any more than I already have. Besides, this isn’t the place to do this.
Haley surprises me by slipping her arms around my waist and leaning into me, pressing her face against my chest and breathing deeply. “You smell so good.”
“I took a shower before I came to pick you up.”
She laughs. “No, it’s you. You smell good.” She gazes up at me with a playful pout on her face. “I’ve missed you.” And then she leans up for a kiss.
And this time it’s not a peck on the lips. I wrap my arms around her and hold her close. Her mouth is suddenly hungry and eager against mine, and hot desire rushes through me. As our kiss deepens, I slide my fingers into her hair, groaning because having her in my arms like this feels so damn good.
Without warning, the elevator doors swish open, and we break apart.
Mack and Erin stand there, staring at us.
Haley takes a step away from me and says, “Hi, Dad!”
Mack looks at his daughter, and then at me as I’m wiping strawberry-flavored gloss off my lips. Even if he didn’t actually see us kissing, he sure knows now because we’re both flushed and breathing hard.
“I hope we didn’t interrupt anything,” Mack says.
“No, sir,” I say. Nervously, I clear my throat. “Not at all.”
When we step out of the elevator, Mack wraps his arms around Haley, lifts her six inches off the ground, and kisses her cheek. “Hey, sweet pea! How are you?”
“I’m great, Dad,” she says as he sets her down.
“What brings you two here tonight?” he asks her.
“We’re having dinner with Layla and Jason. What about you guys? Where are you headed?”
“We’re going out for sushi,” Erin says.
Everyone who knows Erin knows she loves sushi. She opens her arms to Haley, and the two girls hug.