31. Trevor #2
Flipping him off, I move to the side to lean against the wall.
I check the time every few minutes, and at fifteen, decide to go after her.
When I walk outside, I hear her laugh traveling across the glistening snow, the sound tunneling through me, cataloging into that affectionate place in my heart.
The glow from her phone lights up her face as she leans against the horse corral.
I stick my hands in my pockets, the wind whipping around me.
The slow crunch of my footsteps seems to echo in the wide-open field, and she looks up at my approach.
“Hey, Ash, I have to go.”
“ What ? You can’t just leave me hanging! Stay strong. Hold out until New Year’s. I have designer shoes hanging in the balance,” Ashlie screeches through the speaker.
“I’ll call you tomorrow to wish you guys a Merry Christmas.”
“Wills, don’t you dare hang up on m?—”
Willa shakes her head, ending the call. “She’s been asking if she lost the bet since we got here.”
I make the last few steps to her, stopping only when the toes of my boots nudge hers. “And what did you tell her?”
Her rapid breathing curls into tiny frozen clouds, setting me ablaze.
“That we haven’t even kissed…again,” she whispers.
When she bites her lip, my attention flies to her mouth.
It’s all I can do to drag my eyes back to hers.
She watches me through her lashes, and I almost come undone. “Is that okay?”
“Sure, Gem.” Laughter floats from the barn, snapping me out of my stupor, and we giggle nervously. “They love you, ya know? My family, they’re crazy about you.”
Willa smiles, her gaze falling as she pretends to adjust the blanket around her shoulders. “You were right. They’re pretty great.”
“Willa?” I grab the edges of the blanket and tug her forward, holding her against me until her eyes meet mine. Leaning in close enough to feel the warmth puffing from her parted lips, I whisper, “Scale of one to ten?—”
“Eleven, Trev.”
“Call me Tre,” I mumble, before taking the smallest taste of her. Another, and I can’t hold myself back, diving hard against her mouth.
She matches the force of my kiss, sucking my lower lip with a sensual tug.
Shooting stars sail behind my eyelids as she trails electric fingertips down my sides.
Her lips are softer than I remember, but just as brazen, and just as sure.
I pull her in at the waist, knowing damn well it’s not close enough, and lavish her with all the dreamed kisses I’ve collected in my head.
She snakes her hands around my neck, crushing my mouth with hers before trapping my lip between her teeth.
Carry her into the house . Screw the consequences .
The screen door bangs, driving a reality crushing wedge between us as we jump apart.
“Ope! Don’t mind me.” Maya waves a broom in the air while stomping across the patio. “Just gotta get that damn cat. Carry on.” We watch as she disappears around the corner, but her grumbling carries across the wind.
I turn back to Willa, whose eyes are scanning the ground with a light smile playing at her lips. “You okay?” I ask. “That was… ”
“Intense. Yeah.” She smiles up at me. “Um, I think I’m going to turn in.”
“Dammit, Sprinkles! Get your ass in the house!” Maya’s voice echoes, pulling away our attention again.
“Let me walk you,” I say eagerly.
“No, no. You go finish the movie with your family. I’m tired, and I need to think.” She takes a deep breath and glances at the house.
“Okay, well, consider this too.” Hooking a finger under her chin, I tilt her face up for another kiss.
“And this.” Her lips eagerly meet mine in a slow embrace.
“And this.” I leave her with another that takes all of my self-control to pull away from, with the sweet tug of her lips. “ I ’ m crazy about you, Willa.”
A sigh squeaks out of her, and she nods quickly, tightening the blanket around her shoulders.
“I think I’m crazy about you too,” she whispers.
Stepping away slowly, she ambles across the snow toward the house.
Sprinkles darts between her legs when she opens the door, and she pauses, throwing a sultry look back at me. Go after her, dummy .
“I hate that cat.” Maya trudges toward me through the snow, broom in hand. “Did I ruin the moment? Where’s Willa?”
“Thinking…” I say, scratching the back of my head.
“She’s great, T.”
“She’s amazing…”
“You’re in love with her?”
I chuckle quietly. “Not yet.”
“Yeah, but you will be.” She pokes my arm with the broom handle.
“Without a doubt.”
“So why are you out here talking to me instead of in there with her?”
“I’m giving her space to think.”
Maya nods, laughing. “From what I’ve learned about her, you two are the same in that way. She processes her thoughts internally, just like you do.” She lands a soft punch on my arm. “Just don’t get so caught up inside your heads that it gets in the way of the important stuff, T.”
The broom leaves streaks in the snow as she drags it behind her, making her way into the house. I begrudgingly turn back to the barn. No matter how much I want to chase after her, Willa needs to make the next move .