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He leaned in, and I thought he’d go for the lips. I hoped he would.
They were easier.
His lips on my mouth wouldn’t allow me to think. I could just be with him and not think about other things between us. Things like what I did or did not say the other night.
That wasn’t what Dorian did, though, and his mouth brushing my check did terrible damage. He lingered there, his breath heating my skin. He let me think in that position.
You’re not going anywhere.
I didn’t want to. I wanted to just be, but my rogue thoughts wouldn’t let me. I kept remembering what it was like to not be with him.
I kept remembering how it was when he’d left.
That wound stayed open, and though I wished to forget, it was so hard.
If Dorian saw that in my eyes, he didn’t say. He simply kissed my cheek, then pulled back. He told me I’d see him later. He had to get back to class, and I was happy he once again hadn’t pushed me. I wasn’t ready to tell him I loved him yet, but it was almost worse he didn’t push. It meant he was willing to wait.
I hoped secretly he wouldn’t always be.
I preferred lunchtime with the dark prince. Lunch with him, Bow, and the rest of Legacy was filled with general boy debauchery and with little to no time for direct conversation with Dorian himself. He was usually engulfed in conversation, and I just blended in.
My brother actually joined the group for lunch today. He was finally starting to get caught up, and to celebrate, Wells and Thatcher suggested we all go to Jax’s Burgers. The two made good on their promise to bring me food. When we ate at school, a bag of greasy goodness was always there for me at our lunch table.
The two jocks were well on their way to getting me to forget about what assholes they’d been, and it was kind of hard to be annoyed by them when they were so fucking goofy. They had me roaring in laughter most of the time. Especially because their antics constantly pissed off the two older boys. Ares and Dorian may only be a year older than them, but their lack of patience when it came to the two definitely showed. Dorian was pretty laid-back about it, but Ares spent more time knocking their heads together than anyone else. He always had a short fuse in general, but since Dorian had left, I hadn’t noticed it as much. He seemed more at ease whenever I saw him.
“Wait. The fuck?”
Which was why his voice elevating on the other side of the booth caught me off guard. He had his hand raised, his finger shooting in Dorian’s direction. “You took my mother to what?”
Dorian’s arm dropped from my shoulders, and at this point, Bow stopped her conversation with my brother and the other guys. We’d had to push two tables together today at Jax’s just to accommodate with the boys’ grub. Dorian put his hands together. “I took her to meet Sloane.”
“Why?”
Dorian’s brow lifted slow. “Because she asked.” He leaned back. “She wanted to meet the girl who’d helped you with your project. I ran into her in the hallway, and we got to talking about it.” He tossed a fry at him. “What’s your deal?”
He seemed to have one, Ares’s gaze shifting in my direction. He had an audience, and once he realized he did, he sat back and gripped his arms. “My mom’s busy, bro. She doesn’t have time for that shit.”
That… shit?
He grunted. “What did she have to say about it? The project? Sloane?” He shook his head. “I wasn’t trying to bother her with that shit. She’s obviously seen it and everything. I just don’t want to bother her with any unnecessary shit while she’s trying to work.”
Again, I didn’t know what he was calling shit, but whether he was talking about our project or me, I was insulted either way. I cocked my head. “What is your problem—”
“I was talking to D, little.” Once more, he dismissed me, and what the fuck?
I twitched at his response, and he put his hands to his mouth.
“D, you know how busy my mom is.”
“I’m aware.” His arm returned behind me. “But like I said, she asked me.” He eyed him. “And what’s with you coming at Sloane like that?”
The question was on my mind too, everyone else watching on.
Ares’s jaw shifted. “We just agreed that, even though my mom is at school, she isn’t.” His lips pulled together. “I obviously can’t stop her from doing what she wants to do, but when it comes to us.” He waved a hand at him and the guys. “We do our thing until she gets this out of her system and leaves.”
Was he embarrassed by his mom? He shouldn’t be. I mean, she was really cool. I cuffed my arms. “Your mom’s really nice.” I glanced between him and Dorian. “She even asked if I needed help figuring out college stuff.”
His digit touching the table, his gaze flicked my way. “She did?”
