11. Shane #3
“Shit,” I say under my breath, running my hand over my mouth.
That buzz under my skin is no longer just humming but raging like a thunderstorm.
I swallow before grabbing her chin to make her look at me.
“You didn’t do anything wrong. That piece of shit did.
Don’t you dare spend another minute being ashamed of what happened. ”
Tears well in her eyes, but she sucks them back again, not allowing a single one to fall.
“If he ever comes near you again, you tell me. I’ll fucking kill him.”
She swallows, blinking away the last of the sadness in her eyes. “I think you might be crazier than me.”
I chuckle. “I definitely am.”
For the first time since we left the party, she smiles. She bites her upper lip. “Thank you.”
Before I realize what I’m even doing, I reach out and tuck a stray hair behind her ear.
The faintest dimple flashes on her cheek, and she drops her eyes back to her lap. “Do you want to come in? My mom works tonight.”
“Yeah.”
She quickly tucks all of those feelings away, shifts back to the bulletproof girl she was before, and climbs out of the truck.
I follow her up to her house, wondering how often she’s done that in her life to be so good at it.
How many times has she folded up those feelings into a tiny package, wrapped it in a bow, and shoved it into a corner?
Has anyone ever noticed?
I want to scream for her.
We’re both mostly dry by now but covered in mud. When we make it upstairs to her room, she opens her closet door and pulls out some clothes before tossing me a pair of teal pants and a T-shirt.
The shirt fits fine, but the pants are so short they stop mid-calf. I look ridiculous, but I can’t very well hang out with her in the clothes we wore while rolling around in the mud, and there’s nothing that’s going to stop me from being here with her.
So, I wear the damn things.
I flop down on the edge of her bed when she looks over her shoulder at me, pulling her tiny shorts up her toned legs. “Capris might be your look, babe!”
Then, she busts out laughing.
“Fuck off!” I scold, grabbing her arm and pulling her toward me. She tilts her head down, and I capture her mouth. When my tongue licks her lips, they part. I want to drown in her.
“I’ll put your clothes in the washer, and I’ll be right back,” she says against my lips.
I keep my hand planted firmly on her back. “You don’t have to. It’s fine. I’ll wash them when I get home.”
She grins. “But if you wear my pants home, how will I know you won’t keep them?”
I chuckle and smack her ass as she struts across the room, grabs my clothes, and trots out.
She comes back a few minutes later and climbs onto my lap, resting her forearms on my shoulders.
“You could stay the night?”
“What about your mom?”
She twirls her fingers in the hair at the nape of my neck, shrugging. “She doesn’t get off until seven tomorrow. You can just sneak out in the morning.”
When she bites her bottom lip, I shift us until we’re lying in her bed facing each other before saying, “If you want me to stay, I’ll stay.”
She lifts her leg and drapes it over me. I run my hand over her bare skin, kneading her thigh, and she tangles her fingers in my hair. Then she nips at my bottom lip, and my grip on her tightens for a moment before I slip my hand under her T-shirt and grip her ass.
Her fingers trail down my neck to my chest where her nails dig into my flesh as she rocks her hips before she slides them between us and grips me through the short-ass sweatpants.
A groan rolls through my chest, and she smiles into my mouth.
Pushing her back until she’s under me, I settle between her legs. When I press into her, she goes completely still. I open my eyes to see all the color has drained from her face, and she looks like she might throw up.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, rolling off her.
“Nothing.” She shakes her head, trying to pull me back to her. “I’m fine. Keep going.”
“No. Nik, you’re not fine. Talk to me.”
She swallows and pushes her fingers to her eyelids. “God. I’m so sorry,” she says, her voice cracking.
“It’s fine.” I pull her hands from her. The color comes back to her face in the form of a blush, creeping up her neck to her cheeks. “Just tell me what’s going on.”
“I just—I mean—” She closes her eyes again, releasing a long exhale. “Not here. I can’t do this here.”
It dawns on me what she’s trying to say, and guilt crashes into me. “Oh fuck. Nik, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
I pull her into my chest, place a kiss on the top of her head, and squeeze her to me tightly.
“I’m so sorry,” she murmurs into me.
“Hey.” I tilt her chin up so she looks at me. “You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s really fine. I should have realized this was a bad idea. I wasn’t thinking.”
She stares up at me.
“This is one hundred percent my fault. I don’t want to do anything you’re not ready for, okay?”
She nods, snuggling into me and whispers, “Do you still want to stay?”
“Yeah, roll over,” I say, guiding her until her back is to my front and then I’m pulling her into me. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”
She lets out a small laugh. “Thank you.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I want to be here, not just for sex. I just want to be.”
I feel her nod against my arm that’s tucked under her head.