Page 81 of All I Feel

“It’s Thursday.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

Sighing again, I said, “Maybe I should clarify that we’ve been sleeping in the same bed since Sunday evening.”

With caution marring her features, Harper said, “And?”

“And he hasn’t tried to make a single move on me,” I declared. “I mean, he kisses me. God, does he know how to kiss. It’s unbelievable how good he is at it. And he’ll kiss me for very long stretches of time. But that’s it.”

“That’s… it?”

I nodded.

Harper squinted at me while Savanna said, “So, he kisses you a lot and has you sleeping in his bed, but you think he’s not interested in you?”

“Well… Yeah.”

“I don’t think that’s true.”

Shaking my head slowly, I replied, “No? Then why doesn’t he want more? Maybe I’m a bad kisser.”

“That’s definitely not true.”

“What else could it be?” I countered. “He kisses me breathless. And he gets excited. I canfeelhis excitement if you catch my drift. So, I’ll think it’s going to happen, and then he just stops and cuddles with me. Don’t guys want sex? Shouldn’t he be trying to at least cop a feel?”

Harper’s brows shot up, and Savanna sent me a look that indicated she understood why I was struggling not to fear the worst.

When neither of them said anything, I continued. “I don’t want to compare Ace to anyone else, especially not Ryan, but Ryan was the only serious boyfriend I had. And from our very first kiss, Ryan always tried to push for more. Ace hasn’t done that, and I can’t help feeling like perhaps it’s my lack of experience that’s shining through every time he touches his lips to mine.”

Harper reached out and covered my hand with hers. “There’s nothing wrong with you or the way you kiss, Tessa. I’m sure Ace loves every minute of it, or he wouldn’t continue to do it.”

“So, what is it that’s holding him back?”

“Well, have you talked to him about it?” she countered.

My eyes nearly fell out of my head. “No way. I couldn’t possibly say anything to him. I’d be absolutely mortified.”

“Mortified only if he said that what you were thinking was the truth,” Savanna reasoned.

“What else could it be?”

She smiled. “I think it’s possible he believes you’re not ready.”

I jerked back, and my body went stiff. “What?”

“Savanna’s right,” Harper said, giving my hand a squeeze. “If Ace knows that your first and only time was one weekbefore you learned that Ryan was cheating on you, that’s probably what’s holding him back. He’s not an idiot. It was eight months before you felt ready to take that step. Ace just doesn’t want to pressure you into something one week after you both decided that you wanted to give a romantic relationship a try.”

The thought had never crossed my mind. I’d spent night after night endlessly kissing Ace. And I kept waiting. Waiting for that hand to creep higher and cover my breasts. Waiting for his fingertips to journey beneath the hem of my nightie. Waiting for him to take off his shirt and allow me to feel and kiss the skin on his chest.

“It’s possible…”

“It’s the only explanation, Tessa,” Savanna said.

Harper added, “He’d never string you along like this if he wasn’t serious. That’s just not who Ace is. He’s best friends with Phoenix, too. We’ve known him our entire lives. He wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, Tessa.”

They were right.

How could I have assumed the worst about Ace? Sure, it was more my lack of experience I’d been assuming was the problem, but by believing that was it, I assumed Ace would’ve continued to make me think he liked me when he didn’t.