Campus Hottie (Campus)

“Do you have time for a quick break?” Now that I’ve laid my hands on her, I need more. One peck isn’t going to be enough.

“Yup.”

With that, I pull her from the chair and tow her to the stacks where there’s a bit more privacy from prying eyes.

“I’ll just be over here,” Mike calls after us, “all by my lonesome.”

“We’ll only be a few minutes,” she shoots back.

I glance at Elle. “What was all that about?”

“Mike thinks you’re pretty hot and muscly. For the record,” she winks, “I agree one hundred percent. He wanted to know if there were any brothers or cousins who might be his type.”

A chuckle slips free as I shake my head. “Nope. It’s just me.”

“That’s what I told him.”

Once we wind our way through a couple of bookshelves, I stop and tug her into my arms. Her slender body presses against mine, fitting perfectly.

“The only thing that matters to me is that I’m your type.”

“You don’t have anything to worry about. You are definitely my type.”

I slant my lips over hers until our tongues can dance and mingle. As soon as she opens more fully, I deepen the kiss and crush her against the bookshelves. She twines her arms around my neck, clinging to me as if she’ll never let go. At the moment, I don’t want her to.

Once we come up for air, she whispers, “I’m so tired of sneaking around and pretending we’re not together.”

“I know. That’s exactly why I’m looking forward to having you all to myself this weekend.”

Her eyes soften. “Me, too.”

I press another kiss against her mouth. “We can talk and get everything figured out, okay?”

She nods. “We’ll have the place all to ourselves...”

“Oh?” I waggle my brows. “It sounds like you might have some plans in mind.”

Her expression turns coy. “Maybe a few.”

The corners of my lips tilt as they hover over hers. “Care to share? Give me a little preview?”

“Nope. You’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”

My cock stirs with interest in my sweatpants. “Tease.”

Her fingers settle over my hard length before gently stroking it. A groan escapes from me as she continues to play with my growing erection.

In the middle of the library.

Just as I’m about to suggest we take this somewhere more private, a familiar voice says from the other side of the bookshelf, “Dude, I’m so wrecked after that practice. This is the last place I want to be.”

“Agreed. But I need to finish up this paper for econ. Then we can get the hell out of here.”

Fuck.

Brayden and Easton.

Elle’s eyes widen as she recognizes the voices. Either of them could turn at any moment and catch sight of us.

We need to get out of here.

Quietly.

If her brother finds us, he’ll string me up by the balls. No questions asked.

It only makes me realize that Elle is right. All the sneaking around might be kind of fun, but it gets old after a while. At some point, we’re going to have to tell him.

The question is when.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Carson

I navigate the Tahoe through the woods that push in at the edges of the narrow strip of road. By now, the trees have completely lost their leaves. A thick carpet of browns, reds, and golden colors decorate the forest floor. Since we played an early game today, Elle and I were able to take off by three o’clock. Even though I tried to slip out of the house unnoticed, I ran into the one guy I was hoping to avoid. Instead of coming clean, I pussied out and said I was heading home to see my parents. Not thinking much about it, he’d clapped me on the back and told me to have a good time.

Omitting the truth is one thing. Flat out lying is another.

After this weekend, I need to talk with him and explain the situation. I’m not under any illusions that it’ll go well. I’ve been friends with him for long enough to realize that he’ll be pissed. I’m just hoping I can convince him my feelings for his sister are genuine, and that I’d never do anything to hurt her.

I’ve spent most of my life protecting Elle.

He has to see that...right?

When Elle squeezes my hand, I blink back to the present and glance over at her. She flashes a smile and all thoughts of her brother vanish. As much as I hate sneaking around, I’m glad we’re taking this time to get away. It’s exactly what we need.

As we turn onto the rutted road that leads to the cabin, the trees close in even more, the branches almost scraping against the side of the truck. I’ve been coming to the lake with the Kendricks since Brayden and I became friends in elementary school. I have so many good memories of this place. Of fishing, camping, swimming, tromping around in the woods, having bonfires in the backyard, and riding ATV’s. For a kid whose parents weren’t outdoorsy at all, it was paradise, and I looked forward to our trips every year.