And we’ll be careening down a path neither of us is prepared to deal with.
Before I can toss off the covers and scramble from the bed, Easton shackles my wrists and cages me in with the heavy weight of his body.
“Oh, no you don’t.” Heat ignites in his eyes as a slow smirk curves his lips. “How did I know you would try to run from me?” One muscular thigh gets thrown over my legs to keep me pinned in place. His thick erection presses insistently against my hip. “Now that I’ve had a taste of you, there’s no way I’ll give it up.”
No matter how much I try to steel myself against the desire he sparks to life so easily, it’s impossible. A whimper explodes from me as another wave of heat dampens my core.
I say the only thing I can to stop this from happening.
“Do you have any idea how much I love you? The friendship we have is special.”
The heat filling his eyes vanishes as softness rushes in to fill the void. “I love you too, Sash. You know that. Maybe that love is morphing into something new, but that’s all right.”
“What if it doesn’t? What if we’re only meant to be friends? I don’t want to lose you.”
“That will never happen. Do you understand me?” His lips ghost over mine. “We’ll take this slow, okay? One day at a time.”
He breaks away long enough for our gazes to lock. A silent promise is transmitted between us before his lips return, wiping away the doubts that have mushroomed up inside me.
“We won’t take this any further until you’re ready.”
Relief floods through me as I nod.
In order for a romantic relationship to have any chance of succeeding, that’s exactly what needs to happen. And it gives me hope that we’re both on the same page.
8
Easton
“Dude, you need to settle,” Rowan says, walking past on the way to his locker.
I roll my head from side to side as if that will alleviate the nerves eating away at my insides.
“What’s up with him?”
From the corner of my eye, I catch Rowan nodding toward me.
Brayden, who’s in the middle of getting dressed, sends a speculative glance in my direction.
“If I had to guess, I’d say it was a female.”
The quarterback glances at me. “Is that right? Who’s the lucky—or maybe I should say unlucky—girl?”
Like I’m going to answer that question.
If I know these assholes—and I do—they’ll bust my balls if they realize who has me worked up into a series of complicated little knots, and then I’ll never hear the end of it. Although, if any of my teammates should understand, it would be these two. Both of them have fallen hard and fast.
When Brayden grins like a Cheshire cat, the conversation we had the other night slams into me full force.
Well, hell.
“E has a hard-on for Sasha.”
Rowan’s brows rise at that bit of information. “No way.”
I glare at Brayden for turning something important into nothing more than a joke. That’s the last thing I need. Practice ran over by twenty minutes and I’m already late to pick her up for our date. I’m doing my best to prove that not only can we be the best of friends, but lovers as well. Sasha has always been my everything. I feel like a complete idiot for not seeing how perfect we were for each other sooner. I don’t know what the hell I’d been thinking. Maybe I should thank Ryder for forcing me to confront the feelings that have been brewing for a while now.
On second thought...
“My guess is that Clark has it bad.” He yanks up his boxers before glancing my way. “I assume you straightened out your situation the other night?”
Fucker.
Disappointment settles on Rowan’s face as he shakes his head. “Looks like I owe Demi twenty bucks. She figured it wouldn’t be much longer before you two realized that you were more than friends.”
My mouth tumbles open. “Are you serious?”
He shrugs. “Yeah, she called it about a month ago. I told her she was crazy, but apparently that girl can see things I don’t.”
How the hell could Demi realize what was going on when I couldn’t?
Rowan claps me on the shoulder, drawing my attention back to him. “Anyway man, congrats. Sasha’s a cool chick.”
“Yeah, she is,” I mutter, still knocked off balance.
He cocks his head. “So, you two are headed out tonight?”
“Yeah.” I glance at the digital clock on the wall above the door. “I’m late. I was supposed to pick her up ten minutes ago.”
“Then I guess you’d better get your ass in gear.”
He’s right. Even though there hasn’t been much to this conversation, it’s settled something deep inside me.
It takes less than five minutes for me to dress, grab my athletic bag, and head out the door. I send Sasha a quick text to let her know that I’m on my way before sliding behind the wheel of my truck.