Chapter 21
Anna
“That’s what I thought you’d say,” Travis says.
“You’re not mad?” I ask.
“No. I wouldn’t have wanted to be your friend either.”
I playfully elbow him. “If you had said you wanted to hang out as friends, I probably would have thought you were screwing with me. Or playing a prank on me,” I say.
“I would have thought the same,” he says.
“I’m so used to arguing with you. I don’t think we’ve ever had a conversation until recently where we didn’t bicker or argue.”
“You’re right. We haven’t.”
We stop to throw away our empty containers in a nearby trashcan, then keep walking around campus. We get to a big water fountain near the science building and stand in front of it.
I catch myself smiling as I look at the water bubbling up. I glance over at Travis, and a warm feeling settles in my chest. It’s wild how easy it is to talk to him, even about touchy subjects, like how we didn’t like each other when we were younger.
Another warm breeze swoops around us, lightly spraying the water from the fountain over my skin.
“God, that feels good. Especially on a hot day like this,” I say.
“I can’t believe it’s already so warm. It’s almost ninety degrees out, and it’s only the first week of May.”
“I like the heat. I’m happy it’s hot.” I turn to him and shrug. “Sorry, hockey boy. This is probably a little too warm for you, huh?”
His mouth slashes up into a smile. “Yeah, but it’s okay. I like that it makes you happy.”
That tingly feeling swoops through me once more.
“I shouldn’t be happy. It’s hotter than normal here right now, which means there’s probably a glacier melting in the Arctic for this to be possible,” I say.
When I look at Travis, he’s staring at me.
“What?”
“You’re really smart, Anna.”
I chuckle softly, a little flustered.
“You are,” he says. “Only a smart person would make a joke like that.”
His gaze lingers on me, making me shiver, despite the heat.
“I like how smart you are. It’s sexy.”
I bite my lip. “That’s a change. You called me a know-it-all pretty often growing up.”
He rubs the back of his neck. “That was shitty. I’m sorry I did that.”
“It’s okay. I called you mean things too when we were younger, like dumb jock and meat box.”
He starts to chuckle. “I mean, you weren’t wrong.”
“You weren’t wrong either. I was kind of a know-it-all as a kid. I still am.”
“You’re intelligent. There’s a difference.”
I stand there, heartened by the way he builds me up. And that he apologized for what he said to me when we were younger.
“You know, it’s funny. Back in middle school, my algebra teacher would get on my case about raising my hand too much in class,” I say.
“What? That’s a teacher’s dream, to have a student who always wants to participate in class.”
“Yeah, but he thought I was hogging the chance to participate in class from other students, which I guess I kind of was. He even asked me to stay after class one day to talk to me about it. He said I should try to be more reserved and less confident about my intelligence because some boys find that intimidating in girls.”
Travis’s brow lifts. “Are you serious?”
“Yup. The nerve that guy. Sexist jerk.”
“What did you say?”
“Smart-ass thirteen-year-old me said, ‘Good. That’s exactly what I want to do: intimidate boys.’”
Travis bursts out laughing, then holds his hand up for a high-five. I smack his palm as I laugh too.
“Can you believe I said that?”
“I actually can. So did you stop raising your hand in class?” he asks.
“Nope. I did it more just to spite him.”
“What a little badass you were.”
I grin. “I was just a nerd with an attitude.”
He shakes his head. “You were a kid with integrity and conviction. You still have that. ”
I smile softly at the way he puts it.
“Even when I was a kid, I just wasn’t willing to shrink myself to make a boy feel good about himself. I guess that’s why I leaned into being such a know-it-all.”
“You shouldn’t shrink yourself. A guy who would want you to do that that isn’t worthy of you,” Travis says.
“I’m sorry your teacher said that to you.
And I’m sorry if I made you feel like you had to dim yourself when I gave you such a hard time when we were kids.
That wasn’t how I felt about you at all. ”
I look at him, heartened at his apology.
“You didn’t make me feel that way, Travis.”
He looks relieved.
“Honestly, I figured you gave me shit because I gave you shit. We were just dishing it back to each other constantly,” I say.
“That’s exactly it. I was just annoyed that you gave me such a hard time.”
“Then we’re even. We’re good.”
He reaches out and scoops my hand in his. “I’m glad,” he says softly.
For a second, I’m nervous. What if someone sees us and tells Nick that Travis and I were holding hands?
But then I remember that Nick is with Ryker today. He’s helping him put together furniture for the nursery. And most of the students on campus are gone since it’s the end of finals week.
No one will see us holding hands.
I savor the warmth of his hand around mine. As we walk back in the direction of my apartment, I feel relaxed and giddy at the same time. I can’t believe this. I can’t believe with our history, after all these years battling each other, that Travis Maxton is the guy giving me butterflies.
“Hey, um, I don’t mean to bring up something unpleasant, but that Colin guy hasn’t bothered you, has he?”
His brow furrows in concern as he looks at me.
“No. I only had to see him twice when he took over the lab for my professor. He stayed away from me. He avoided even looking at me.”
He nods, then he’s quiet for a moment. “If he ever bothers you again, I want you to tell me.”
Tingles spread through my chest and tummy. He’s so protective.
“Okay. I will,” I say softly.
When we make it to the entrance of my apartment, I turn to him.
“I’d ask to come up, but I promised my mom I’d come over for dinner,” he says.
I grin. “That’s okay. Thank you for the ice cream.”
“My pleasure.”
“This was really fun.”
He flashes that sexy-as-sin half-smile. “It was. Can I see you again? Maybe on Saturday?”
I grin, that giddy feeling hiking up my chest. “Yeah.”
He promises to text me, then pulls me against him. His mouth presses against mine, and then he parts my lips open with his tongue. He laps my tongue softly, slowly.
Cupping my cheek with his hand, he tilts my head back and swoops his tongue deeper in my mouth. I whimper. He sucks on my tongue, and my knees wobble. He grabs me by the waist and presses me against the door.
I’m hot and shivering all at once. Whoa.
He leans back, breaking our kiss. I’m breathing hard. He is too.
“I should go.” He thumbs my bottom lip. “I really, really don’t want to. That mouth…” he growls softly.
I pat his chest. “You need to go. You can’t ditch your mom. That’s unforgivable.”
His head falls back as he groans, smiling. My tummy dips. I like seeing him worked up and wanting more of me.
He takes a step backward, his chest heaving with a breath.
“I’ll text you,” he says.
“You’d better.”
He takes a few more steps backwards, his eyes on me, then turns around and hops in his car. I watch him drive off and head inside my apartment building. The rest of the day, I’m wearing the biggest smile.