My stomach drops. “The whole school?”
She smirks, nodding, “Yep. Word travels fast around here. And it’s not like you two were exactly subtle.”
“Oh god,” I groan, covering my heated face with my hands. “I didn’t want everyone to know. Whatif—”
“Hey,” she interrupts, “Stop. Seriously. It’s not a bad thing. You’re both happy. And all anybody’s talking about is how sweet you two are.”
I peek out from behind my hands, mortified, but oddly touched. “They are?”
“Uh, yeah. Half the girls think it’s the most romantic thing ever, two teachers in love. The other half wanna steal him, so watch your back.”
That pulls a giggle from me, the tension easing from my shoulders. “I can’t blame them, heiscute.”
“But he only has eyes foryou.”
When I get back to my classroom, my heart feels lighter than it has in a long time. There are still secrets between Nate and me, and I know that I shouldn’t get too invested.
But maybe, just for now, I can let myself be happy.
Footsteps have barely stopped echoing down the hall when Nate steps into my classroom, his hair slightly messy, like he’s been running a hand through it all day.
He looks tired.
But when he sees me, his face relaxes. “Hey,” I say, with a small smile. “Rough day?”
He crosses the room in quick strides and wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me into a crushing hug.
At first, I’m too surprised to do anything but stand there, feeling the solid weight of his body pressed to mine, touching all of me.
But I can feel the tension running through his body, so I save the freak-out for later. We can do this, we’re sort of dating now.
I wrap my arms around his neck, hugging him back.
He exhales shakily, like he’s been holding his breath all day, finally letting it go as he relaxes into my embrace. His forehead dips against my shoulder, and I can feel the way his chest rises and falls against my own. “Been wanting to see you all day,” he murmurs, low and rough.
“I’m glad you’re here,” I say, hugging him tighter.
I hate to see him like this, that his concern for his brother is weighing so heavily on him.
For a long time, the only sound in the room is our breathing and the occasional locker shutting. When the halls go silent, he pulls back to look at me, keeping his hands on my waist. “Sorry, I shouldn’t barge in and… I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
“You don’t have to apologize. You can always come here. And you can have as many hugs as you want.”
“As many hugs as I want? You sure about that, Darlin’?” He asks, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear, his touch warm and careful. “Just seeing you makes me feel better.”
My heart clenches at the tenderness, and I have the feeling that I’m already in way over my head, but I still stand on the tips of my toes and close the distance between our lips for the second time.
He sighs against my mouth, his hands tightening at my waist. My world narrows down to the scratch of his stubble and the warmth of his breath, and the quiet relief that floods through me when he kisses me back.
When we part, his forehead stays pressed to mine. “I needed that.”
“Me too,” I whisper.
The energy between us feels heavy all of a sudden, and I can’tstop my eyes from trailing back down to his lips.
Kissing Nate could become addictive.
“You know…” I pull back, trying to ease the tension out of the air before things go further. “There’s a rumor going around school.”
