Then he kisses me again.
This time, there’s no hesitation. No polite brush of lips. His mouth claims mine with deliberate intent, his tongue sliding past my lips with a confidence that steals the air from my lungs.
I grip his shoulders, hanging on as the world tilts.
When he pulls away, I’m dizzy. I might not have any functioning brain cells left.
“There,” he breathes. “Now we’re even.”
He releases me, sitting back in his seat like nothing happened, like he didn’t just rewire my entire nervous system in front of a stadium full of witnesses.
“You good?” he asks.
I stare at him.
Am I good?
I’m many things right now.
Shocked.
Ruined.
Definitely turned on.
But good?
Good is not one of them.
26
LIAM
The morning after the game, for the first time since Peyton moved in, I don’t wake up wrapped around her. Mostly because I didn’t allow myself to fall asleep.
I spent the night rigid on my side of the bed, afraid to let loose near her after the kiss. Kisses. Every time she shifted, every soft exhale, every rustle of sheets sent a fresh jolt of awareness through my already frayed nerves.
My body wanted to close the distance.
My brain knew better.
At the stadium, I played it cool. Acted unaffected.
But inside? Inside, I’ve been fizzing ever since. As if acid were corroding me from within—only the acid, instead of being painful, is a bubbly, terrifying delight. It’s been hours, and I can still taste her. Still feel the phantom pressure of her lips.
I drag myself out of bed and into the shower, staying under the spray until my skin turns pink, willing my thoughts to stop circling back to the moment she decided to have her way with me.
It doesn’t work.
When I emerge from the bathroom, she’s already up. I hear movement downstairs. I get dressed and join her in the kitchen.
Peyton is perched on one of the island stools, hair up in a messy bun, eating a banana.
I freeze in the doorway.
She peels back another strip, brings the fruit to her lips, and takes a bite.
My brain goes to filthy places. I grip the doorframe hard enough to splinter the wood.