Color floods his cheeks as he lets out a nervous laugh. “Shut up.”
“Only if you kiss me again.”
He hums thoughtfully and pretends to consider it, tapping his finger against his lips. Typical. Even when he’s flustered, he acts like a brat.
But then he leans in and kisses me, soft and sweet. My lips melt as my hand fumbles blindly with his, interlocking our fingers. I squeeze his palm gently.
When we finally separate, I rest my forehead against his.
“I don’t want this to be a one-time thing,” I admit. “But I need to be upfront with you. After the summer ends, I’ll have too many responsibilities, and—”
“Hey,” he cuts in, shaking his head. “It’s okay. I’m not looking for a serious relationship right now, anyway.”
I lift a brow, skeptical. “You’re not?”
“No. I’m only in town for a few more months, and I’ll be busy with grad school in the fall. Plus, I’m going to be a TA.”
“A what?”
“Teaching assistant.”
“Oh, right.”
He hesitates, then his lips twitch into a crooked grin. “But… I’d still like to hang out this summer. I like kissing you—and I wouldn’t mind doing more of that.”
I laugh, the tension in my shoulders easing. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” he says, smiling so wide his eyes crinkle. “I mean, we’ve got all summer to spend time together.”
“All summer,” I echo, pecking his lips.
As we walk through the woods back to the parking lot, I hold his hand. It’s dark enough that nobody can see us. The moon shimmers across the lake and spills silver light through the trees. His palm is warm in mine as he swings our arms like we’re kids on the playground.
When we reach the edge of the lot, we both stop. Only our cars remain: his luxury spaceship car and my rusted pickup truck that’s older than me. The contrast is almost laughable, but I bite my tongue.
“So…” he says, glancing at me sideways. “I’ll text you?” His voice is softer now, like he’s not sure if that’s the right thing to do.
“Yeah. Please do.”
He gives me a crooked grin and leans in for one more kiss—just a brush of lips, lazy and warm—before jogging back to his car with a little wave. I watch him go, fingers still tingling where they touched his.
When I climb into my truck, I sit there a minute with the windows rolled down, letting the night air cool my heated skin.
This doesn’t have to be anything serious. I know that, and we both want the same thing. We drew our lines in the sand.
Still… maybe it’s selfish for me to want this. I have responsibilities. Work. Bills. A little sister to raise. A mom who can’t take care of herself, let alone anyone else. I don’t have the luxury of distractions.
But tonight, I let myself want him anyway. It’s just an innocent summer fling, and we’ll have a clean break when he goes back to college in a few months.
What harm could it do?
Chapter Thirteen
When I arrive home, I’m still riding the high of my post-orgasm bliss.
There’s a stupid grin plastered on my face as I kill the engine and sit in the quiet for a second, the truck ticking as it cools. My tongue lingers with the taste of Hunter’s release. My jaw still aches in a way that makes me smile harder.
I wasn’t expecting tonight to go like that. And I certainly wasn’t expecting to feel… whatever this is. Giddy? Hopeful?
