“Spill whatever it is you want to share before I vomit,” she demands, relaxing just enough to lean into me. I was hoping she would forget about that somehow, but she hasn’t. I could just tell her about something else, right? But when those light brown eyes look up at me, I give in like a fool.
“I, um,” I clear my throat, already feeling it trying to shut off my air supply. “My mom. I don’t normally talk about her. Ever,” I add. I’m regretting this before I even start, especially with those sad eyes of Presley’s watching me.
“What was she like?” she asks, trying to help me get my thoughts out. I could have kissed her for that, but I don’t. Instead, I answer her question.
“Amazing.” I look out over the campus because it’s easier than looking at Presley. “She never yelled at me. She was always so calm and collected. She never let what she was feeling get the better of her.” I chuckle at th
e thought. “Well, actually, the only time her emotions got the best of her was when she was watching hockey. She’d yell and yell just like she was as invested as the players. It was hilarious to see such a little woman throwing her hands around, screaming at the TV, her face got so red when she yelled. Mom was just as passionate about hockey as she was about her family.
“Between her and Dad, there’s no way I could have grown up doing anything other than playing hockey. I remember nights where she and my old man would go at it for hours over which team was better. Hers or his. She was just as cool as me talking to you right now. They would smack talk each other, especially when their teams played one another. You’ll never hear anyone talk trash to someone with such love for the person and dislike for the team at the same time. Every time Mom would try and convert Dad into a Pittsburgh fan with their animated conversations, Dad would always end it by telling her the same thing.
“He told her, ‘Only an amazingly perfect woman who loves Pittsburgh like you do can love a man who loves the Flyers.’ I always thought it was cheesy and that she would roll her eyes at him, but she never did. Momma just smiled and kissed his cheek.”
I take a risk and look at Presley. She’s watching me so intently as if she’s waiting for me to break. It won’t happen just like it hasn’t happened since the day I found out she was sick.
“What happened to her?” she asks quietly with hesitation.
I sigh. “She got sick.” That’s all I’m willing to share and I hope Presley gets the point.
“I’m sorry, Levi. I can’t imagine what that must have been like for you. Thanks for sharing that with me.”
I kiss her forehead because I don’t know what to say. Me, who always has something to say, can’t think of a damn word. The realization of everything I just told this girl, who I’m supposed to be only playing with her feelings, hits me and I don’t like that I gave in.
“C’mon. We should go.” Without waiting for her to say something, I turn and hop off the ledge before helping her down. I stuff my hands in my jacket pockets as we cross the roof and head down the stairs. My one job in this is to mess with McCarthy’s head and all it has done is mess with mine.
“Levi, wait up.”
I stop to see that I’m about ten steps lower than Presley.
“I can’t keep up with your long legs,” she adds.
“Sorry,” I murmur. We start walking once she’s beside me, and I stay next to her.
“You really didn’t want to tell me that, did you?” she questions quietly.
Well, shit. “No, it wasn’t that, Smarty.” I take her hand in mine as reassurance. “It’s just been a while since I’ve talked about my mom.”
“Then why talk about her now? To me?”
I don’t know! Who knows why all this mess keeps spewing from my mouth. I can’t tell her that, though. “I told you I would get over a fear if you did.”
“Well, why are you scared to talk about her? It can’t just be that it’s too sad, right? I mean, I get that, but -” Presley sneaks a look at me and stops. “Sorry, I’m rambling.”
“That’s a story for another day, Presley,” I say firmly as we step outside. “I’ll walk you to your car.”
Nothing is said during this time and I appreciate the silence. She pulls her keys from her pocket and presses the button to unlock her door as we approach her car. I open the door for her, but she doesn’t get in yet. Instead, she reaches up to clasp her cold hands behind my neck and pulls me down. Her kiss is tentative at first as if she’s unsure. Because I don’t want her to hesitate about kissing me, I press her against me and part her lips with a sweep of my tongue.
I wonder for half a second where her hands are going when I feel them leave my neck, but I can’t focus on that for long when Presley kisses me like this. It’s a kiss filled with such desire that it lets me know she wants me just as bad as I want her. A freezing sensation chills each side of my lower back and I realize her hands slipped underneath my shirt. I leave her lips to kiss along her jaw with one last caress before I pull away.
“I’ll catch ya later, alright?”
“Don’t you want to come back to my place?” she questions with a sexy grin causing me to laugh.
“Maybe next time.” Presley’s lips form a slight pout and I wonder if she even knows she’s doing that. It’s barely a movement, but I notice. “Drive safely,” I order, stepping back so she can get into her car.
As she slips into her seat, she shakes her head and says, “Who would have thought that out of the two of us, you would be the debbie downer? See ya, Levi.” Presley closes her door and I start the walk to my SUV when she pulls away.
~ ~ ~