See Me After Class(111)

“Do I get a treat for listening?” he calls out.

“Yes, you’ve avoided a kick to the crotch. Congratulations.” Clearing her throat, she picks up her burger and takes a bite. Talking around her mouthful, she says, “Go on, details.”

Gunner and Arlo take a seat with Romeo, and before Arlo sits down, he winks at me. That man is going to be the death of me.

“Well, honestly, it started as more of a sexual thing.”

“La la la la la la la,” Cora says, covering her ears. “I don’t want to hear about the sex.”

I remove her hands and say, “I’m not going to talk about the sex, I’m just stating, that’s how it started. And when it started to get, uh, a little out of control—”

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Cora mutters.

“I asked him where this was all going.”

“Oh, famous last words of an enemies-with-benefits arrangement.”

“Pretty much. That comment put a halt on everything.”

“Ugh.” Cora rolls her eyes. “What a dick.” Shouting over to the boys, she says, “Arlo, you’re a dick.”

Arlo raises a brow in my direction, so I shake my head and mouth, “Don’t worry.”

“Wait, did the halt happen right before you went on a date with Walker?”

“Gah, good point,” Cora says, excited. “Did it? Did you make my brother jealous?”

“He didn’t like it. At all. And I think it helped him realize that maybe he’d like to give things a chance. That, and some deep conversation he had with you, Cora.”

She slaps the table. “I knew he owed me for something. Sparkly item, here I come.” She rubs her hands together. “So, he pulled it together, and then what?”

I smile. “Well, at homecoming, I saw a side of him I’d never seen before. It warmed me toward him, and then he and I sat in the back of his trunk afterward with cookies and drinks and talked.”

“Crumbl cookies?” Stella asks.

I nod.

“Oh, he got you good. Hard to say no to those.”

“That, and his charm. And then he wrote me notes, wooed me with a date Wednesday night on a boat, and I’ve been gone ever since then.”

“A boat date? God, where do I find myself an Arlo?” Stella asks.

“Romeo is quite the catch,” I say with a cheeky grin.

“Brock is a moron.”

“Hey, I heard that,” Romeo calls out.

Stella turns in her chair. “That’s because I said it loud enough so you could hear it.”

“You’re ripe today.”

Oh boy.

Stella’s eyes turn into flames. “Go ahead. Call me ripe one more time. See where it gets you.”

“Dude, I wouldn’t call her ripe,” Gunner says out the side of his mouth. “She looks terrifying.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” I ask her.

“Fine.” She takes a deep breath. “Well, how exciting. Does this mean Walker is available?”

Keeping my voice low to spare Romeo’s feelings, since I feel like something is going on there, I say, “He’s actually caught up on someone else.”

“Son of a bitch,” Stella says under her breath.

“Bet you Romeo would take you out on a date,” Cora says, loud enough for the boys.

“Over my dead body,” Romeo shouts.

And for some reason, I don’t believe him.





Chapter Twenty-Five





ARLO





“Look me in the eyes,” I demand as I drive into Greer. “Do not close them. I want to watch you come.”

“Oh God,” she screams, gripping the headboard behind her. “Oh my God, Arlo.”

“How close?”

“Right . . . now,” she says. Her hips convulse and her mouth falls open, a silent scream causing my orgasm to rip through my body.

“Ah, fuck,” I grunt, spilling into her, my hips stilling as she continues to move hers.

Together, panting, we melt into the mattress, me partially collapsing on top of her.

It’s been two weeks since our date, and I still look for more and more every night when it comes to this girl. She’s only spent one night at my house—as she doesn’t want to make Cora uncomfortable—because she can’t keep her voice down while I fuck her. And the rest of the nights, we’ve either FaceTimed or I’ve spent the night at her place.

We spend lunches together.

We walk into school together.

And the weekends, so far, we’ve spent together.

And I don’t have one goddamn complaint.

In a few short weeks, this woman has not only consumed my thoughts, but she’s made me think about a different future. One with daily intimacy. No secrets. No loneliness.

“God.” She laughs and breathes heavily. “I think I blacked out for a second.” She turns her head toward me. “I can’t feel my legs.”

“Same,” I say, breathlessly. “Come here.” I pull her in close, loving the lavender scent of her hair.

“I told my parents about you.”

“Did you?”

“I did.”