A Million Kisses in Your Lifetime(34)

“What’s your answer then, Wren?”

“No. Okay? Are you happy? I’ve never been kissed. But please…keep that to yourself.”

I’m filled with the urge to kiss her right now, but I tamp it down. “Do you want to be kissed?”

“Of course. I just—it hasn’t happened for me yet.”

“Why not?” I glance down at her hand, that damn diamond winking up at me. “Because you promised yourself to your father?”

“It’s not like that.” She shakes her head. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“Please explain. I’d love to understand.”

“Look, no one’s been interested in me enough to even want to kiss me. And no one has really interested me either.”

“What if I told you I was interested.” The words leave me as if I have no control of my thoughts or feelings. I should’ve never said that. The entire moment feels too real, too raw.

I should be threatening this girl to keep her mouth shut after what she saw, but I don’t even bring it up. Not anymore. Even stranger? I’m not worried about her telling on us. She won’t.

I can sense it.

She rolls her eyes. Tries to laugh off what I said. “Please. You definitely don’t want to kiss me.”

“How do you know?” I lean in closer, her intoxicating scent wrapping around me. “You going to let Larsen kiss you then?”

“What? No.” More nervous laughter leaves her. “Not after what you told me.”

“Good girl,” I murmur, noting how her eyes shine at my approval. “You need to stay far away from that asshole.”

“Might be kind of difficult since I’m going to his house for dinner tomorrow night.”

“Don’t let him get you alone.” I’m fucking jealous that she’s going to spend Saturday with that prick Larsen. “Promise me, Birdy. I won’t be there to watch over you.”

“Like I need you as my guard dog. Don’t forget you’re the guy who just chased after me a few days ago and tried to assault me,” she says.

“Assault?” I’m grateful her tone is quiet so no one else heard her say that. “I think you liked it too much to call it assault.”

Her entire face reddens. “You’re awful.”

“But you like it.”

“Not really.”

“A little bit? Come on, you can admit it.”

“Not enough to give you the satisfaction of saying so.” Her smile is serene. “Quit digging, Crew. It’s not a good look for you.”

We’re smiling at each other and it feels…weird. In a good way. In a I might like this girl more than I want to admit way.

The bell rings, knocking us from our trance, and Wren jolts in her chair, immediately reaching for her backpack. I watch her as she puts her stuff away, zipping it up and slinging it over her shoulder before she stands. “Bye, Crew.”

She walks away before I can say anything, her hair swaying. My gaze drops to her skirt, lingering there, wishing I could see more of her.

Wishing I could protect her.

The foreign feeling settles over me and I rub my chest, frowning. Why do I want to protect her? Why do I care so damn much? I don’t get it.

I don’t understand my feelings for her.

I leave the classroom and exit the building, heading for the junior and senior dorm building. I don’t have a room there. As a Lancaster, I automatically get one of the private suites in another building that once housed staff when they lived on campus. But I hang out here sometimes, usually in the common room.

Where I’m headed right now.

I find a chair and settle in, waiting while I scroll on my phone, my gaze going to the door, knowing eventually I’ll see him appear. He’s so damn predictable. His favorite place to hang out after school is in this very room. All of his followers surrounding him, waiting for another story about yet another innocent girl who gave it up to his douchey ass.

The problem with the girls not talking about what he does is they don’t warn the others who follow after them. It’s like this weird secret that grows and grows. Everyone knows it’s happening, but no one admits it’s actually happened to them.

It’s kind of fucked. Someone needs to call Larsen out for his shit.

Maybe that someone should be me.

What does it really matter, what Larsen does with other girls? We’ve let it happen for the last couple of years, so what’s the difference now?

Wren.

She’s the difference. I can’t stand the thought of him even looking at her, let alone touching her. He’s a piece of shit creep who doesn’t deserve even an ounce of her attention. Wren is so damn sweet and pure and good.

I barely deserve her attention, and I’m ten times the man that Larsen the fuckhead is. And if he were to do something that would devastate her completely, like film her while he took advantage of her after slipping a drug in her drink? Holy shit.

I’d probably kill him if given the chance.

It takes him a solid twenty minutes, but he finally shows up. Larsen enters the common room with a smile on his face, high fiving a couple of dudes who greet him like he’s their long-lost leader.

Such a bunch of shit. That they even look up to this supreme asshole says a lot about them.