“I don’t want to confuse him.”
Cole sighed. “You’re right,” he said. “Well, then, just know that I’ll be thinking about you. While you’re lying in your bed, I’ll be lying in my own, wishing you were with me.”
We kissed again, a long, lingering one that made my knees feel weak. We said goodnight, and as I walked next door, I couldn’t keep the smile off of my face. I’d done it. I was no longer a virgin, and it had been better than I ever could have imagined.
Chapter Eighteen
Cole
That Sunday, when my parents came over, one of the first things my mother asked me about was if I had seen Allie again. We were sitting on the deck, watching Declan in the backyard as he dug for rocks with the new pail and shovel set my parents had just brought over for him.
“Errr...” I paused. I hadn’t planned on mentioning anything to my parents about it—at least not just yet—but I also wasn’t interested in hearing more of my mother’s worries about the fact that I was still single. “We have been hanging out. We’re kind of seeing each other, I guess.”
“You are?” she asked, perking up.
“Yes,” I said. “But don’t say anything to Declan about it yet.”
“Of course not. I think that’s wise to take things slowly with him and not introduce him until you’re sure that things are serious.”
I noticed, though, that my father wasn’t looking as thrilled as my mother was. “Now, don’t get me wrong,” he said, “I think she’s a very nice girl. But... you’re seeing each other? She’s Declan’s teacher, correct?”
“Yeah.”
“Is that...kosher?”
“What do you mean—because she’s his teacher? It’s not like she’s my teacher.”
Now my mother also had a worried look on her face. “That thought never even crossed my mind. Do you think there might be some sort of policy that she’s violating? She certainly seemed like a lovely person, but it seems as though they might have rules or something against that sort of thing.”
“Well, he’ll be starting kindergarten in the fall, so it’s not like he’ll be going to the Learning Center for that much longer, anyway,” I said.
My mother seemed satisfied with this answer, but my father looked skeptical.
“I’ll talk to her about it,” I said. “I’ll mention it to her, anyway. I don’t think there’s really going to be a problem, though.”
Even if there was, that wouldn’t be enough to make me stop seeing her.
Instead of going for a ride when my parents took Declan out a little later, I went over to Allie’s house.
“I was just thinking about you,” she said when she saw me. “Come on in. Where’s Declan?”
“He’s with my parents,” I said as I followed her into the house.
“Cool,” she said. “That means I can do this.” And she stepped right over to me and put her arms around my neck, pulling me in for a long kiss.
“So, I happened to mention to my parents that I was seeing you,” I said when we finally pulled apart.
“Seeing me?”
“Yeah. Is that...okay?”
“I guess we are seeing each other. I mean, I was hoping that it wouldn’t be a one-time thing. Though I’d understand if it was,” she added quickly.
“No,” I said. “I don’t want it to be. I’m not saying we should be talking about moving in together and what sort of seating arrangement we want at the wedding or anything like that, but...I’ll be completely honest with you, Allie—I really enjoy spending time with you.”
She smiled—coyly, it seemed—and raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?” she said.
“Absolutely.”