“Oh my god, you’re such an ass,” she grumbles, shaking her head at me.
I shrug. “And you can be a bitch. Need I remind you of the first time we met? Are we over this entire fiasco now?”
“Yeah. Will you still take me home?”
“Of course.” I don’t want to, but I will. And I plan to give her one hell of a kiss before she gets out of my car. Hopefully, it’ll leave her thinking about that and not what happened with Bruce’s dumb girlfriend.
Thankfully, Ian didn’t ask what else Bruce’s girlfriend, Veronica, said to me. What I told him was the worst of it. Those are some mean girls, that’s for sure. I knew I should’ve been wary of what they said because I know Ian so well, but after the kissing and groping session at his house, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was any truth to it.
He made me feel better and then kissed the hell out of me before sending me on my merry way.
And now, I’m almost certain Dad thinks I only came to see Ian. Why? Because the next day when I ask if I can hang out with Ian, he tells me I have to
be home by dinner. He does the same thing the following day. Basically, I can only see Ian while Dad is at work.
For Ian to say he didn’t invite me here for sex, things keep heading in that direction. It’s my own fault, too! I kiss him first each time and then he takes over and we go a little further than the last time. I would love for my first time to be with Ian, but I don’t know if I want it to be now. I’m not sure that I’m ready. When we’re kissing and he’s touching me, I’m totally ready, but when we’re not, that’s when I second-guess everything. Therefore, I’m in a constant state of confusion.
It doesn’t help that he’s also started calling me babe. It’s not as often as gorgeous, but he’s said it at least once a day. I melt every time. It’s crazy. We’re just friends who kiss and he calls me gorgeous and babe. Insanity, I’m telling you.
He’s the only one who’s capable of thinking enough to pull away. Yesterday, after Ian stopped one of these kissing and groping sessions, he decided we should leave the house. He took me to town and showed me around. It was nice to see some of the places that he would mention hanging out. Next time he talks about it, I’ll be able to picture it in my head with better accuracy.
Today, we’re exchanging Christmas presents because tomorrow is Christmas Eve and Dad has already told me I won’t see Ian at all over the next two days. This is our last day together because I have to be at the airport first thing the day after Christmas to go home. It’s too soon. I’ve been sad all day because I don’t want to leave. This was a bad idea to come see him. It’s been better than last time.
“Are you ready for this?”
My heart hammers in my chest as I glance over at Ian. We’re lying in his bed on top of the covers, and my first thought is that he’s talking about sex. But no, Ian is holding up a small present that he just plucked from his nightstand drawer.
“Do you wrap them yourself?” I blurt out.
He laughs. “Yeah. Do you want to open our presents now?”
“Yeah, I guess. Grab yours.” I set his down on the floor at the foot of the bed earlier. Ian grabs it after handing over my present and the pair of scissors I’ll need to get it open. “You first,” I say. He flashes me a quick grin before ripping into the paper. I had to save all of the birthday money from this year in order to buy his present, so I really hope he likes it.
He opens the box and his eyes widen as he pulls out the jersey of his favorite hockey team. You can customize the back, so I put his name and current number there. His dream is to play professionally. I don’t know if it’ll ever happen since I know nothing about sports, especially hockey, and because Ian talks like it’s extremely difficult to make it. He makes it sound like it’s a far-fetched dream instead of something that could actually happen.
“Babe,” he whispers in awe. “This is the best present ever.”
I shrug off his comment. “I figured it could be a good motivator for what you want.”
He nods in agreement and then leans over to kiss me. He nearly tackles me, really. But just before he’s about to kiss a moan out of me, he pulls away. “Your turn.”
Right. I have a present, too. I unwrap it to find another piece of jewelry. “What is it with you and jewelry?” I curiously ask.
“You don’t like it?”
I quickly look up at him because Ian sounds nervous. “No, I do, but you’ve given me four presents and three are jewelry. Was curious as to why.”
Ian shrugs. “I don’t know why.” He’s quiet as I pull the bracelet from the box. It’s gold, like the rest of the jewelry he’s given me. Instead of a chain, it’s a bunch of infinity symbols interlocked with one another. “Because our relationship is infinite,” he explains.
Swoon.
Wordlessly, I hold out my arm and he clasps the bracelet around my wrist. “I’ll never take it off,” I promise.
His fingers graze over it before looking up at me. Ian pushes my hair out of the way to see my necklace, letting his fingers trail over it as well. Then, he leans down to lift my pants leg, pushes down my sock, and there’s the anklet.
“I think I buy jewelry because I hoped you would wear it all the time, and you do. It’s like there’s a part of me that’s always with you even though I’m not. That’s stupid, isn’t it?”
I shake my head. “Not at all. That’s why I wear it.”