He looks over at me then, and heat rushes to my skin. It’s almost as if he’s undressing me with his gaze, but just as quickly as he took me in, he looks away, pinching the bridge of his nose. I’m not sure how to take that.
Silence falls between us, and I stuff my mouth full of Goldfish. I notice he’s watching me eat, and I shrug. “They’re good.”
“They’re my favorite.”
“Mine too.”
We share a grin, and I just adore the dimples in his cheeks. They’re so deep, so cute, and Lord, if I don’t stop staring at him, I’m gonna jump him. We both look away at the same time as the air crackles around us. Or, at least, around me; I don’t know what he is thinking. Maybe I should find out?
“Are you running tomorrow?” he asks, and I shake my head.
“Not with our early practice.”
“Okay. I was going to get up early and head out.”
“I’ll catch the next run,” I say, and then I meet his gaze.
“I need your number,” he says, grabbing his phone. “We can coordinate these runs.”
Ugh, am I just a running partner at this point? At that moment, my phone rings. I jump at the noise and look to see it’s Cameron. “Hello?”
“Hey, it’s too far of a walk upstairs for me in heels. Have hunky RA man walk you down, and let’s head home.”
“Oh, okay. Give me a minute.”
I hang up and stand. “Can you walk me down? Cam doesn’t want to come up all the stairs.”
“Sure,” he says as he stands. “Not sure it’s a good idea for you to be in here or seen with me anyway.”
Well, hell, I guess that’s my answer. “Huh?”
He fumbles with his words, his cheeks turning red. “I mean with how the girls have been acting about me, trying to get with me, and then you’re in here. They’ll get the wrong idea.”
I shrug, annoyed now. “Oh, I don’t care.”
“You don’t?”
“No. Why would I?”
He doesn’t move. He just stares at me. “Because you don’t want them to think we’re hooking up.”
I laugh as I turn to face him. “They already assume we are. Even Coach asked.”
His eyes widen. “No shit. What did you say?”
“That we weren’t.”
“Oh.”
“And even if we were, would that be such a bad thing?”
That was a little forward, and I know how he does with forward, but I’ve gotta take my shot here. He seems taken aback, but the grin that forms along his lips is breathtaking. “I know I shouldn’t, but I gotta say, you look really beautiful tonight.”
Okay, didn’t expect that. I wave him off. “Better than a leo and chalk, huh?”
His lips tip at the side. “I happen to enjoy the leo and chalk.”
I look up at him and swallow hard. Well, here we go. Before I chicken out, I look down and say, “I know you said you weren’t looking for any distraction from your goals, but would you like to get—”
My words are cut off when he takes my jaw in his hand. My eyes meet his, and ever so slowly, he moves his thumb along my bottom lip. He swallows hard, and I realize I’m not breathing at all. I get lost in his eyes, and everything inside me catches on fire. Then, by the grace of God Himself, despite all the prayers Nico has been praying, Evan lowers his mouth to mine.
I have never been so ready for a kiss in my life, and there is no way I’m gonna stop.
Rules or not, Evan Adler is mine.