“Fuck off.”
“She’s not even late.” He clicks something without looking at the screen. “Five minutes. Are you going to survive?”
I stop at the window. The quad’s empty with just some freshman hauling laundry. My hands won’t stay still. I shove them in my pockets, but they find each other again, knuckles cracking.
I need to see her.
Not want. Need. Like oxygen, like blood. Three hours have passed since I walked her to her dorm. I’ve been counting the minutes, staring at my phone, forcing myself not to text. Addiction. That’s what this is. I should be scared. I’m not. My infatuation with her keeps growing. I tell myself I need to keep an eye on her partly because of the Coach Murphy situation, which is somewhat true, but deep down, I know it goes farbeyond that. That this isn’t because of some sense of duty to watch over her and protect her.
“You know you’re being crazy,” Grant says, grinning. “I didn’t have Luke Locke falling for a girl on my bingo card.” He’s just running his mouth. His ass is still new. Yet I can’t deny the truth laced in his words.
“Do I look crazy?” I stop pacing. I don’t need Madeline running from me freaked out. Not that I wouldn’t track her ass. I’m wearing her down.
“You’re pacing like a dog waiting for his owner.”
I flip him off. He laughs.
Then I see them through the glass. Madeline and Georgia cross the quad, heads bent together. Madeline’s in jeans and a hoodie, hair still wet from a shower, no makeup, not trying at all. She’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen. My chest tightens, that familiar fist closing around my lungs. What the fuck is she doing to me? Is this because she’s the first girl who wouldn’t give me the time of day? Possibly, but it’s more than that. I was into her before she opened her mouth. I didn’t know I had a type, but now I do. Madeline.
Two guys from the soccer team pass by them. One turns his head, checking her out. I see it from here. See how his eyes drop to her ass and down her long legs; his mouth twitches.
I go still. Something cold and sharp slides into my veins.
Grant follows my gaze. “Easy, killer. They’re just looking.”
“They can look somewhere else.” If I give them two black eyes that swell shut, they won’t see shit.
The door opens. Madeline walks in first, and my whole body locks up and relaxes at the same time. She’s here and safe. Georgia is talking about something involving firewalls, but I don’t hear it. I only see Madeline. The way she moves, unaware of herself, unaware that every guy in this building would cut off a finger to touch her.
Madeline spots me. Her cheeks flush slightly. She tries to hide it, turning to say something to Georgia, but I saw. I affect her just as much.
I’m across the room before I know I’ve moved. I reach her, slide my arm around her waist, and pull her to me. She stumbles against me, surprised. I drop onto the couch, dragging her with me. She lands in my lap, stiff, her elbow catching my ribs.
“What are you doing?” she hisses.
I don’t answer. I hold her there, my arm locked around her waist, and scan the room. The soccer guys didn’t follow them in. It’s their lucky day. I’ll have a word with them later, but if word spreads about Madeline and me, most will back off, not wanting to get me pissed.
My gaze catches a junior by the vending machine, eyes flicking our way. I stare, and he quickly jerks his attention back around, pretending he doesn’t notice. What the hell? Is everyone checking her out now? Grant’s right: I’m fucking crazy.
“We’re a couple, remember?” I whisper against her ear, low enough that only she hears. “Act like it.”
She tries to wiggle free. I tighten my grip, not enough to hurt, just enough to hold her tight and let her know her little ass isn’t going anywhere. My mouth finds her neck, just beneath her ear. I kiss her there, soft, and then again lower. She smells like vanilla and something sharper and clean. I have to fight a growl.
“Luke.” She elbows me, but there’s no force behind it. “Stop.”
I don’t stop. I kiss her collarbone and feel her shiver, her ass flush against my hard cock. I swear if she moves one more time, I’m going to come on myself. She fights a smile, turning her face away, but her cheeks are pink now. She’s enjoying it. She can keep trying to hide it, but I know. She doesn’t have to tell me; her body and reactions are sending me all the answers.Patience,I remind myself. Over time she’ll get more and more used to the idea of us.
“You’re impossible,” she mutters.
“And you’re mine.”
The words slip out before I can catch them. Too much. Too honest. She goes still in my lap. For a second, I think I’ve scared her. Then she relaxes slightly, her hand finding my knee and squeezing.
Grant clears his throat. “Are you two done? Some of us are trying to solve a murder.” He says in a low voice. I don’t think he gives two shits about the murder.
I look up. He’s watching us, amused. Georgia places the journal on the table and pulls out her laptop.
“You know how strange this is?” Georgia asks, looking at me and then over to Madeline. I’m sure it is. This isn’t me. Not only do I have a girl, but I’m touchy-feely. Who knew I’d be into PDA? I sure as fuck didn’t.
