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Then his gaze flicked up.
Cam closed the little distance between us before I had a chance to move away. My heart leapt in my chest at the thought that he might kiss me, that I was literally seconds away from my first kiss, and I had no idea what to do. My mouth felt funny after all the crying and I was sitting on a toilet, which probably wasn’t the most romantic of all settings.
But he didn’t kiss me. He pressed his forehead against mine and let out a ragged breath that smelled of mint. “You drive me fucking insane sometimes.”
I drove myself fucking insane. “Sorry?”
Cam pulled back a little, his eyes searching my face. “Don’t run off like that again, okay? I was worried shitless when I couldn’t find you and no one knew where you were.”
I almost apologized again, but apologies were really like wishes. There were an abundance of both in my life and neither really made a difference. So I did something I don’t even think I’d ever done, not even before.
Scooting forward, I pressed my lips to his smooth cheek. His eyes widened, and I inched back. Under his intense stare, I wondered if that had been the wrong thing to do.
Cam started to move forward and then stopped. His eyes were so large and they were truly beautiful, unique in the way the hue seemed to deepen and darken. “Avery?”
I swallowed. “Cam?”
He didn’t give me his lopsided grin or show off his one dimple. “Go out on a date with me.”
There was a tugging in my chest and I was reminded of that moment when he’d come back to campus early after fall break and had come straight to my apartment. Something had cracked inside me then and it did so now, like a wall of… reservation. The party hadn’t worked out, but Cam… he was different. He’d always been different.
And he was here. That had to mean something. It sure felt like it did.
My brain was telling me this was a bad idea and I told my brain to shut the fuck up, because it rarely told me anything helpful. I took a breath, one I didn’t need. “Yes.”
#
Jacob sat across from Brittany and me in the small coffee shop in town, rocking a pair of dark shades and the bowler hat from his Halloween costume. The three of us had skipped History. It had been his idea, and honestly, I was way too wired to be sitting in class. Besides, the only class I’d missed all semester had been the first day of astronomy. Skipping one more time, even if it was my major, couldn’t be that big of a crime.
He groaned as he sipped his latte. “Whoever let me drink as much as I did last night should be smacked in the face.”
I glanced at Brit as I picked at my chocolate chip scone. She shot him a sheepish look. “Well, you let me spend ‘quality time’ with Jimmie, so whatever.”
“And how did that go?” he asked, sliding his glasses down and pinning her with bloodshot eyes. “You looked like you were walking a little funny to the car.” Brit snorted. “Yeah, you’re giving Jimmie way too much credit. I left with you and when Jimmie did text me later, because hello, why wouldn’t he? I didn’t answer. I was a good girl.”
“Good, because if the guy isn’t making you walk funny after sex, then he probably isn’t anything to write home to mom about.” Jacob shifted his gaze to me. “But you, missy, I’m still ticked at you.”
“So am I,” Brit joined in, smacking my arm as I reached for my hot chocolate. “You scared the shit out of me last night. I thought you had been kidnapped.”
“I really am sorry for that. I went home and left my phone in the car.” When I thought she wouldn’t whack me again, I wrapped my fingers around my cup. “I do feel terrible. I didn’t want either of you to worry.”
“Well, we did…” He grinned. “When we realized you were missing. That took about an hour or so.”
Brit made a face as she nodded. “That’s true. So if you were kidnapped, well, that would’ve sucked.”
I laughed, almost choking on my drink. “Wow. I don’t know if I should feel less guilty now.”
“Yeah, we’re shitty friends.” Jacob sat back, tipping his hat up. “Except we totally redeemed ourselves by involving Cam.”
My heart did that cartwheel again.
“We really thought you were with him,” Brit said, sneaking a piece of my scone. “That’s why it took us so long, but then we saw him coming out of one of the rooms with Jase and Ollie.”
“He was really worried when we asked if he’d seen you.” Jacob rubbed the skin above his brows. “He went right out there with Ollie and started looking for your car.”
Brit nodded as she eyed my scone. “It was kind of romantic, especially since you weren’t lying dead anywhere.”
I laughed as I slid the scone toward her.
