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That garnered a surprise laugh out of him. “W-what?”
“I dare you to.”
Ciaran crossed his arms over his chest and gave me a once-over, like he was checking me out for the first time.
When we first met, Ciaran told me that he didn’t do dares or promises. But that was a lifetime ago.
Ciaran knew what I meant.
I dare you to accept me for who I am.
I dare you to believe in me.
I dare you to have fun with me.
I dare you to build a future with me.
“I, Ciaran Liam Galbraith,” he said before placing the gentlest of kisses on my lips, “love you and accept your dare, Matthias Vaulteneau.”
My heart soared.
73
CIARAN
The sun was high in the sky by the time I woke.
Every muscle in my body was sore and tight, but also filled with an electric tingling of anticipation, like the rest of my life was starting today.
Or maybe that was just the constant buzzing of Matty’s cell phone next to my head. He used a unique text alert chime, so I knew it was his phone and not mine.
How or why it ended up beneath my pillow was anyone’s guess, but given that we’d all but disrobed down to our boxers and crashed minutes after talking to our parents last night, my brain was too foggy to process logical thought at the moment.
Honestly, I wasn’t even sure whose room we were in. Or what day it was. I was pretty sure it was Memorial Day, and therefore a federal holiday, but given the events of the last several days, it was possible Matty and I were AWOL from school.
“Make it stop,” mumbled the lump beside me. Matty’s words were slurred, sleepy, and adorable.
I could get used to this, I thought.
Matty, lying on his side, was snuggled up against me, one arm flung over my chest, his skin warm and damp with the heat of our bodies fused together.
Yup, I could get used to waking up with the man I loved plastered against me every morning.
Bravely, I cracked an eye and immediately hissed when sunlight pierced my corneas. “Shit,” I groaned.
“Exactly,” Matty rumbled into my neck, his lips grazing my throat with lazy, unhurried kisses that spoke of happy contentment.
When we’d first met, I thought he was this untouchable, stuck-up celebrity of a man. Instead, deep down, Matthias Vaulteneau was a lovestruck fool.
“No more love bites,” I croaked out once his kisses turned hungry. “My neck is a walking billboard.”
Matty chuckled. “But I like branding you, babe.”
“Oh, it’s only now, after I convinced my mom to let us date, that I find out my boyfriend is possessive,” I shot back without any heat.
“You like me being a little possessive, Ciaran.”
“Hmmm,” I grumbled, shifting so I could peer at him. His phone kept buzzing but we ignored it. Our cozy cocoon was too perfect to let in the real world just yet. “Maybe a little bit.”
