“So fucking much?”
“Yes, Tanner.” I wiggled my ass against him so he would move. I turned around, faced my handsome boyfriend and ran my fingers through his hair. “So fucking much.”
His eyes lit up, but his smile fell just a little. “You didn’t want to increase our three-night rule to four, though.”
Oh man. That face.He had full lips that had me drooling every time he pouted. Plus, I knew how they felt against me. Anything he did with his mouth got me hot. But I remained strong. “Coming from the guy who didn’t think he had time for me because of baseball. Ironic, huh?”
“You’re avoiding the question.”
“You didn’t ask one,” I fired back, loving our constant banter. He sighed, discarded the condom into his trash and rejoined me on the bed. He remained in his naked glory, picking me up so I sat on his lap as he leaned against the headboard.
“Such a cute pain in the ass. My unasked question was why? What do I gotta do to try and get four sleepovers with you? I hate waking up alone…and poor Jeff, I hate sharing a wall with him now.”
“Poor baby,” I cooed and patted both his cheeks with my hands. “I need time to myself. I have no doubt we’ll live together again someday in the future, where we can do it in every room you want any time, but, TJ, I need this sliver of independence for myself. It has nothing to do with you. Trust me.”
“I’m a selfish bastard, I know.” He rested his forehead against my shoulder. “It makes me happy to see you doing well.Your friends are awesome and you smile all the time. I feel lucky I get to be a part of it.”
My eyes stung just enough for a sniffle, but I relaxed into him. “You realize the dorms close for four weeks during the holiday break, right?”
“Are you…can you…four weeks?” he asked, looking wide awake now. “With me? In my bed?”
“I’m hoping you’ll let me stay.” I gave him my cheesiest smile and it worked. He crushed me against him in a huge hug, and I felt overwhelmed by how much I loved him. “I take it as a yes?”
“Fuck, yeah. I can’t wait.” He kissed me again, moaning into my mouth. “Let’s convince your brother to stay with Greta so we can get the place to ourselves.”
The mention of my brother was like ice water in my veins. “Good call. I hate to leave this naked hug, but speaking of Aaron… I need to shower and get ready for our parents to stop by. My list is a mile long and your sexy body distracted me too much already.”
“I’m the best at distractions,” he said with too much pride. I flicked his pec and hopped off the bed, getting more and more used to the happy feeling that glowed inside me. He slid off, too, dressing in old shorts and a rugby shirt.
“What are you putting on clothes for?” I slid into old sweats, a sports bra and a fitted shirt.
“I’ll help you.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to spend more time with you, but also I love how excited you get when you cross something off your list.” He said it like it was no big deal, but it was to me.
“God, you’re the best person, Tanner Johnson.”
He slid methatlook, the one that made my toes curl and my stomach swoop. “I’ll never stop trying to be that, either.”
Falling in love? Check.
Finding my own tribe of friends? Check.
Becoming my own person? Check.
Figuring out what I wanted to do in life? No check—but that’s okay.
Life was about the adventure and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next.
