Page 141 of Apparently, I’m Trouble

“Do you think I could stop?”

I could feel a blush creeping over my cheeks. “You look like you have.”

He took a step closer, and it felt so menacing that I actually braced tighter against the wall. I wasn’t afraid of him. I’d never been afraid of him. I was afraid of what I’d do to him.

If I let myself touch him, knowing there was nothing in our way, I didn’t know if I’d be able to stop.

“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”

He put one arm on the wall above my head and bent until his face was inches from mine. “If I could turn this thing off, don’t you think I would’ve done it by now?”

I folded my arms and gave him a scowl of my own. “Look, if you don’t want to be with me, you don’t have to be.”

He took my chin in his hand, his thumb brushing my lower lip. A shiver jolted down my spine.

I would’ve moved out of reach, but we were alone. Gem had our students huddled on the other side of the stage.

“Yes, I do. I have to be. I need you.”

My pulse thudded as his thumb swiped across my lip. Slow, like he wanted to savor the feel of me under his touch.

“You need me,” I managed, but my voice came out low and husky.

I squeezed my thighs together and tried not to squirm, but having him this close, teasing me, felt like torture.

“I love you, and I need you to tell me you still want this. Because I do. I never stopped wanting you.”

I pulled in a shaky breath and lost whatever fight I was trying to put up. I opened my mouth and let his thumb slip inside, scraping my teeth against it as Theo cursed under his breath.

“Say it, Mia. Tell me you want me.” He pulled his thumb out of my mouth and hooked a finger into my belt loop. He hauled me closer, and my hands flew to his chest.

And I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“I want you. I… I love you.”

He smiled then, and those dimples. Oh, I missed them.

I missed him.

His lips met mine, and his kiss was soft at first. Slow, sweet, gentle. But then his grip on my chin tightened, and as he licked into my mouth, it quickly turned into something heated. Dirty and deep. Hungry.

He gripped my waist and pulled me closer, his fingers digging through the fabric like bruising little vices. My hands trailed up his shoulders, hooking around his neck, as I moaned into his mouth.

But then, someone laughed in the distance, and we froze. He broke away, pushing himself off the wall. We stared at each other, quiet. My breath came out hard and fast. So did his.

Then he held out his hand. “Come on. We should get out of here before Ashley takes another picture.”

And I just couldn’t help it. I had to laugh.

Epilogue

THEO

Theo’s Apartment

Saturday Night

A year.