“Just a little bit?” I set the cards down on the computer desk and grasp onto her legs. “I guess I’m going to have to take it up a notch, then.”
Without warning, I spin around and around, and she busts up laughing, her arms tightening around me.
“Nope, still not impressed,” she says through her laughter.
“Man, you’re a tough crowd to please.” I stop spinning, lift my arm, and in one swift movement, swing her around and drop her on the bed.
She lands on her back, bouncing against the mattress, laughing. “Okay, that was a little impressive.”
I climb on top of her, putting a knee on each side of her hip. “You think so?”
She nods her head, her laughter dying as she gazes up at me.
I play with a strand of her hair, raveling it around my finger, slowly drawing her up to me. Her tongue slips out of her mouth, wetting her lips, and I stop moving slowly and attack her with my mouth.
Our bodies conform as I shift my knees between her legs, and she grinds her hips against mine in response. She gasps, her fingers fumbling as they trail up my spine and cup my shoulder blades.
I slow the kiss down, taking my time, but my hands are all over her, wanting, needing, wanting. Eventually, I slip off her jacket, and she tugs off my shirt over my head. Then we move up the bed toward the pillows.
I pull on a string on the front of her dress, opening it up so I can place a kiss on her neck, her chest, kissing, tasting, savoring. I’ve never felt like this before, never wanted someone so badly yet didn’t just want to take it.
“I want to take things slow,” I whisper between kisses. “I don’t want to rush everything like I normally do . . . I want to . . . experience this . . .” God, I sound like a babbling idiot.
Thankfully, Luna doesn’t think so.
“I get what you mean,” she whispers against my lips.
I relax and go back to kissing her and exploring her body. We only pull away when Luna’s phone starts ringing from her jacket pocket. At first, she ignores it, but when the damn thing won’t shut up, she pulls away, grunting in frustration, which may be the sexiest sound I’ve ever heard.
“That might be my grandma,” she grumbles, scooting out from under me.
I roll onto my back as she climbs off the bed and picks up her jacket. My lips feel swollen, and I feel high, even though I haven’t even had one drink tonight.
“I think I should probably get home,” Luna says as she sits on the edge of her bed, staring at her phone.
I sit up and slide over beside her. “It’s not from your grandma, is it?”
She hands me the phone, and I read the message on the screen.
Wynter: Hey, princess, it’s way after midnight, which means that your carriage has long turned into a sober, rejected, depressing pumpkin and really needs to get home. Meet me out front soon?
“My friends and I have this rule where we can’t leave someone at a party by themselves,” she explains, combing her fingers through her hair. “Ari already went home, and I’m guessing Willow bailed out, too, and Beck’s probably passed out somewhere, which counts as him being MIA.”
“I love how you guys are always looking out for each other.” I give her back the phone. “I should probably get home, too. I don’t have a pact with my friends or anything, but I do have to go to work tomorrow. It’ll be my first day, and I’m already nervous that I’ll fuck up somehow. The last thing I need to do is fall asleep on the job. Benny does seem pretty cool, though. He might not even get upset if I take a two minute power nap.”
“You’re working at Benny’s tomorrow, too?”
“Yep.” I grin, brushing strands of her hair out of her eyes. “I guess you’ll have to put up with me for two days in a row.”
“I think I can handle that. And”—she rubs her hand across her arm, erasing goose bumps.—“maybe you can keep an eye on me. I’m a little worried about being in a store.”
“Absolutely. In fact, maybe I should keep an eye on you twenty-four seven, no matter what you’re doing, just in case.” I wink at her.
She shakes her head, wrestling back a smile as she gets up and laces up the front of her dress.
I watch her fingers move, gradually covering up her skin, only looking away when she ties the end in a knot. Then I pick up my shirt and pull it on while Luna puts on her jacket.
As she’s putting her shoes back on, I wander around the room. Beck’s room looks a lot like mine used to, with sports equipment everywhere, nice furniture, and a big-ass stereo system. It makes me miss my stuff, but what really makes me choke up is when I see the baseball I gave him balanced on top of a shelf.
I want to reach up and touch it one last time, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to let it go if I do.
“What is it?” Luna asks, moving up beside me.
I bottle down the pain choking me. “It’s just an old baseball.”
“Is it . . . Is it yours?”
“It was.”
“You gave it to Beck for money.” It’s not a question. She knows Beck well enough that she probably understands the deals he does more than anyone else.
“Yeah.” I inhale and exhale as quietly as I can, making myself relax before I turn to her. “Ready to go?” I offer her my hand.
She looks up at the ball then at me before lacing her fingers with mine. “Sure.”
We leave the room together, and it causes a few strange looks and stares.
“Let me take you home,” I say as we push our way down the hallway, winding around people doing almost the same thing Luna and I just did in the bedroom.
“That sounds nice, but you can’t drop me off at the door or anything,” she replies, disheartened. “You’ll have to pull up to the corner of my street.”
“I’m okay with that.” But I wish it wasn’t like that. I wish she wasn’t so trapped in her own home that she has to sneak out to pretty much do anything.
She sends Wynter a text, saying she’s going to ride home with me. Wynter responds that Luna better message her the moment she gets home so she knows I didn’t try to murder her.
“She thinks I could be a murderer?” I ask, slightly offended but mostly entertained.
She laughs, shaking her head. “Don’t take it personally. She always says stuff like that. She says it’s so we won’t forget that bad stuff can happen. Really, I think it’s because she spends way too much time watching crime movies.”
I chuckle, pulling her to me, and brush my lips across her forehead. “I promise I’ll get you home safely.”
“I know you will,” she replies without an ounce of doubt.
Everything seems to be going great—I’d even go as far as calling it the perfect night—until we reach the bottom of the stairway, and Logan blindsides us, blocking our way to the front door.
“Babe, take a look at this,” Logan says with his arms crossed and wearing his famous my-shit-don’t-stink smirk. “I think you might’ve been right. Herpes does make you lose your damn mind.”
Piper ambles away from a group of her friends and toward us. “Whoa,” Piper mutters, blinking her glazed-over eyes at Luna and my interlocked fingers. “Am I hallucinating?”
Great. She’s drunk, and a drunk Piper means a sloppy, even more annoying Piper. I’ve seen her wasted before. She likes to make scenes and throw tantrums to get attention.
My hand constricts on Luna’s as I start to swing around Logan, but he sidesteps us, getting in my path.
“Back the fuck off,” I warn, leaning in.
“Back the fuck off,” Piper mimics then erupts in a fit of giggles. “God, Grey, you’re so uptight.” The heels of her boots click against the floor as she stumbles closer to me. “Let me loosen you up, baby.” Her fingers wander toward on my chest, but I step back. “Why are you acting like I’m diseased or something? You’re the one who’s gross!” She teeters to the side, bumping into the banister. “You have herpes.”
“Thanks for the health update.” I sling my arm around Luna and tuck her against me. “Do yourself a favor; go drink some water and have someone take you home before you make more of an ass out of yourself.”
“I’m not the one making an ass out of myself!” she shouts, her face reddening. “You’re the one who traded this”—she runs her hands over her hips then narrows her eyes at Luna—“for that freak. Now that’s making an ass out of yourself.”