Jase
Her mouth is soft and damp and the way her tongue flirts with mine makes me instantly hard again. Her tongue glides along mine and she balls my shirt in her fists. Her ass fits perfectly in my hand and I grip it, holding her firmly against me so she can feel exactly what she does to me.
Avery plants her hand against my chest and breaks the kiss. “Jase.” Her eyes are alight with passion, her voice breathless…but her tone is all wrong. “We have to stop.”
I reluctantly pull away and meet her eyes. They’re blazing green and swimming with emotion. Shit. I don’t know what I did wrong – and whether to apologize or hush her fears with more kisses. This is why I didn’t kiss her earlier. I shouldn’t have taken it that far. But Avery arouses in me things I’ve never felt. It’s insane. She’s not even mine, and I’m acting like an over-protective alpha male.
She swallows and pulls in a deep breath, the confusion on her face fading. “I’m sorry.”
I take another step back. “It’s okay. I shouldn’t have rushed you.”
Avery shakes her head. “I’m not even close to being ready.”
Shit. I could punch myself. I’ve read the situation between us totally wrong. “On a scale of one to ten, ten being you’re ready to rip my clothes off…”
She bites her lip. “I’m like a negative six.”
“Shit. That bad, huh?” I take a sniff of my armpit, and she laughs. It’s so good to hear her laugh and I relax just a bit.
“It’s not you,” she says, still smiling. “How could it be?”
I pull her into my arms, and kiss her forehead softly. “I’m not going to rush you. When you’re ready, you let me know.” I want her. And I will have her. I just have to figure out what’s going on in that pretty little head of hers.
She nods wordlessly, but returns my hug, bringing her arms around my neck. “Thank you. I just…I like what we have.”
I look down at her. “Me too.”
“Can we just…focus on being friends?”
“Friends.” Great. “Of course.” Blue balls, here I come.
I release her and she steps away from me. Friends apparently don’t rub their erections against their friend’s stomachs. My bad.
“I…I need to go,” Avery whispers. I watch as she ducks her head and disappears inside.
Shit f**k.
Sometimes she seems so innocent….and then other times, not. The way she took those shots like a pro, and the way she kissed, that was anything but novice. Her tongue met mine, thrust for thrust, and we moved together effortlessly. There was nothing timid about her then. Blood flow is still directed south as my body struggles to regulate.
I can’t figure this girl out. And I want to. Hell, I need to. When I’m with Avery I don’t think about the pile of crap that is my life. How crazy everything’s become. She’s like the fresh start I didn’t even know how badly I needed.
Chapter 10
Avery
After class, Jase stops me on the sidewalk, placing his and on my lower back and leaning close. “Come home with me,” he says, his ridiculously pretty blue eyes making it impossible to look away.
My mouth twitches and Jase laughs. “Not like that. I mean we’ll study, come up with our strategy for your upcoming assignments. Being a life coach is a big responsibility and I want to make sure I do right by you.”
I do have some homework to do. And Jase’s bed is super comfortable. I don’t want to second-guess and overthink every decision I make. We can do this as just friends. Friends study together. “Lead the way.”
Before I can even question it, I’m falling into step beside Jase. Being near him is increasingly throwing me off. I’m distracted watching the way his long, lean form does amazing things to a pair of jeans and a thermal tee when I realize I’ve almost stepped out into the street.
Oops.
He takes my hand in his, weaving his fingers between mine. The warm, calloused weight of his palm is new and electrifying. It sends a tingle up my arm and into my chest. I file that under Information Jase Does Not Need to Know. “Is this really necessary?” I make a point of looking down at our joined hands.
“Since you seem oblivious to oncoming traffic? Yes. Yes, it is.”
I arrange my mouth in a polite smile to avoid snapping at him. I’d underestimated the distance of one car at that last crosswalk, and suddenly he thinks I need a helmet. I roll my eyes at Jase, but keep my hand within his.
Once inside Jase’s room, he turns on some music from his laptop and plops down next to me, making the mattress dip.
The music is soft in the background, but soulful and deep. I like it. “What’s this? A study playlist?”
He shakes his head. “A playlist? Nah. It’s the Black Keys. I buy whole albums, not individual songs. I’m not afraid of commitment, babe.”
I smirk at his strange innuendo. “Good to know.”
We arrange various books and study implements across the bed, lying side by side on our stomachs. Studying with Jase is pointless. I can’t concentrate with him so close, but it’s much more entertaining than studying alone in my dorm.
After a few minutes, I look up to find Jase watching me. He’s abandoned his psych homework and is watching as I nibble on the end of my pen, trying to decipher my sociology assignment.
I remove the pen from my mouth. “Hi.”
“Hi.” His voice comes out too high and he clears his throat, and tries again. “Hi.” Deeper this time.