Page 25 of Those Eyes, That Mouth

I resisted the urge to hump against him or touch him too much. I didn't want to wake him up just so we could do it again.

I actually didn't want this part to end.

I was already bracing for a letdown. Even if he didn't regret last night, he still might want things to go back to normal, the way a lot of guys did after hooking up.

He shifted, made a small sound, then yawned. His hand tightened around mine. He turned over to face me, his eyelashes still smudged with mascara.

I started to roll away, give him space so he wasn't horrified by my morning breath.

But he pulled me back. "Where are you going?" His voice was rough with sleep.

I gestured toward the trunk. "I was just gonna grab a smoke.”

"Don't. Stay." He wrapped his arm around my waist, his head settling into the crook of my shoulder.

We lay like that for a while, maybe ten minutes, maybe longer. I didn't want to move, didn't want to break whatever spell this was.

Eventually, he kissed me, soft and deliberate, no tongue.

I turned and looked at the clock on the nightstand. Nearly nine.

"As much as I could stay in this bed with you all day, I'm gonna need a vat of coffee as soon as possible."

He grinned and climbed over me to get out of bed. He looked around for a second, found his boxers on the floor, and stepped into them. I loved watching him move around our room, knowing I was allowed to.

He made a face. "Dining hall?"

"Hell no. I didn't mean a literal vat. Let's go downtown."

We weren't going to shower. Too hungover, too desperate for coffee. We'd just dress and go.

I picked up his sweater from the chair. "Can I wear this?" I pulled it on before he could answer. It was a little big on me. The sleeves were too long but I could push them up around my elbows. It smelled like him.

When I looked up, he was watching me, grinning.

"What?" I said.

"Nothing." But he was smiling.

His lips were swollen from all the making out last night—red and puffy and obvious.

"You're staring," he said.

"So are you."

We both looked away at the same time, grinning like idiots.

We set off from the back stairwell. It was officially November now and cold enough our breath fogged. The sky looked like it was about to rain.

When we passed Alex and Kelly's room and saw their lights were on, I asked, "Should we invite them?" I scrunched my nose. I didn't really want to.

He glanced at the window, then back at me. "Nah. Let's just let it be you and me."

And then he took my hand. Just like that. His fingers lacing through mine. No hesitation.

My face went hot, my heart pounding.

His cheeks were bright red too, his eyes shining.