With Every Heartbeat (Forbidden Men 4)

The idea excited and scared the crap out of me at the same time. I kind of wanted him to turn me down, but I also kind of wanted him to go for the idea.

I think he suffered from the same dilemma. Indecision warred across his face. So I said, “If you don’t want me to—”

“No! I do,” he was quick to correct me. “I really, really do. I just—”

“Then, I am,” I decided.

So, I did!

I was still in a daze three days later, unable to forget what Zoey and I had done in the library together. It was the dirtiest thing I’d ever done and yet, I grinned and my entire body heated every time I remembered it. Even as we sat through art class beside each other on Friday, she blushed every time I stole a glance at her. Then I’d start grinning, unable to stop.

We were so obvious, Reese leaned toward us and winked, “It’s about time you two finally figured it out.”

I looked at Zoey. She looked up at me. And we just started smiling all over again.

I didn’t want to leave her after first hour. But she had biology and I had history. I took history class with Cora, except she hadn’t showed up to it since I’d broken up with her, which was a godsend. Her friend Rachel still showed up, though. She approached me before the professor arrived.

I was completely suspicious.

“Hi, Quinn.” She sat beside me, in the spot where Cora usually sat. When I sent her a guarded glance, she smiled and fluttered her lashes. “So, you and Cora are really over, huh?”

I gave a single, stony nod. “Yep.”

“That’s too bad. You were the best boyfriend she ever had.” She set her hand on my desk, inches away from where I was resting my elbow. Then her smile widened. “The cutest, too.”

I narrowed my eyes at her.

“I bet you’re getting pretty lonely without her.” When she leaned in, moving her hand to rest it on the back of my chair, I leaned away. “You know, I could help you with that,” she said into my ear. “I’ve heard I keep pretty good company.”

The look I sent her told her just how insane I thought she was. “No, thanks.”

Rachel wasn’t deterred. She flipped her hair and kept talking. “She said you were the biggest she’d ever seen. I’d like to find that out for myself.”

“Well, you’re just going to have to keep wondering, because it’ll be a cold day in hell before I take on a carbon copy of her.”

Shock ricocheted across her face before she sat back in her seat away from me. As a blush stole up her cheeks, I continued to stare dryly at her. Finally, she cleared her throat. “I guess you’re still bitter.”

“I guess,” I said. “So you can go back to wherever you came from now and leave me alone.”

She stood with a sniff and couldn’t seem to get away from me fast enough. I watched her go and let out a shudder of relief. Then I smiled to myself. It’d felt kind of good to stand up for myself and send her away like that.

I reached behind me for my backpack to pull out my phone, so I could text Zoey. Feeling this good always made me want to talk to her. Plus, I wanted to wash my conversation with Rachel out of my head with a pure, sweet one with my girl. But I couldn’t find my phone anywhere in my bag’s front pocket where I usually kept it while I was in class.

I was still frowning and searching for it when the professor started class. Damn. I hoped I hadn’t left it at home. I didn’t want to suffer through an entire day without even being able to text Zoey.

After history, I had a free hour—an hour where I usually found Zoey in the library—so I hiked over there, hoping to catch her. I checked our spot first. My cock twitched when I stood in the place where she’d gone down on me between the book stacks. But Zoey wasn’t there.

I had a couple papers to work on and tests to study for, so I found a table out in the front and pulled out my calculus book. I hadn’t even studied for five minutes when a shadow fell over the page I was writing on. My breath caught in my chest, thinking it was Zoey. But when I looked up, Cora smiled at me.

“Hey, baby.” She pulled out the chair next to me and sat down. “I heard Rachel hit on you in history class. I’m sorry about her. She has no control over her ovaries.”

I smirked at her. “Must be why you two are so close.”

Her eyebrows lifted in surprise before she murmured, “Well, look who’s turned into a smart-ass,” as if impressed with my verve.

I sighed and glanced away from her. “What’re you doing here, Cora? You have to know you’re not getting anything from me.”

She slid her arm around the back of my seat, much the same way Rachel had last hour. I glared at her, but she just smiled back, refusing to move away. “I just want to make amends between us, Quinn. You’re the sweetest, most forgiving person I know. And I hate thinking you might hold a grudge.”