But that’s not what tonight was about.
I couldn’t let it get that far. Not yet. Not until I was sure that this was the right choice, right now. I wouldn’t avoid him, but that didn’t mean we were getting married, either. It meant that we were going to get to know each other. It had to stop there.
But I wanted to feel his hands on me. I wanted to lose myself in the smell of him as his hot breath burned my neck. I wanted many things. I wanted him to take control and make me shiver as my body gave in to his needs. He was twenty-one, and I was positive that he hadmanyneeds. My traitorous soul wanted to fulfill every one of them.
My body could not betray me tonight.
He showed up at my house in his jeep. Of course, he drove a very expensive black jeep. The t-shirt he wore was so tight across his torso that it might as well have been skin. I was sure the jeans would be just as dangerous, but from where he was sitting behind the wheel as I shut the door, I couldn’t tell. He was twenty-one. I had expected him to dress as sexily as possible. He was also a jock, so t-shirts and jeans were not a surprise. But damn! He was the most beautiful man I had ever seen.
“I’m glad to see you went casual.” He chuckled lowly and glanced at my bow tie and sweater.
“Like I said, this is casual.” I frowned.
“Whatever you say.” He put the car in gear and drove us a few blocks away from my place in silence, the radio playing quietly in the background. The air felt charged between us. We never really had a chance.
“I got takeout. I didn’t know what you liked, but I got hot chicken sandwiches and fries from this place around the corner from my place.” He glanced over at me with those big brown eyes and slowly pulled into a small driveway. “This is my place.”
“Your place?” I gulped. The implications of being alone with him in his house washed over me.
“Yeah. I said we needed to be alone. No pressure – or anything.”
“This is… not what I was expecting.” I tensed. This was not what I was expecting, and being alone with him – in his house – was about as dangerous as it could get. I agreed because he was right. I was exhausted and tired of trying to ignore him. I couldn’t go on like this, and I knew he couldn’t either.
“I mean, we’re here, and the food is inside.” He shrugged with those massive shoulders, and I knew I would go in with him. I wanted to, even if it might be a bad idea. The world ran on bad ideas.
“Ok.” I nodded, and he turned the car off.
“Stay there.” He got out of the jeep, and I watched him strut in front of the car. He moved like a panther or some other kind of jungle cat. He was an alpha, and that made me prey. He opened my door and held out his hand. “I mean, my mother would be pissed off if I wasn’t the perfect gentleman.”
I thought about it for a split second and gave him my hand. His jeep was quite high off the ground, and before I could even slide out of my seat – his hand slid up my arm, and he gently lowered me down to the ground. Connection. Damn, I felt it all the way down to my toes. He stood there and looked down into my eyes, and grinned happily.
“Are we just going to stand out here all night or…”
“Oh, yeah.” He took a step backward, and I walked past him. He shut the door, and I heard the beep-beep of his jeep’s alarm go off. He jumped ahead of me to get to his front door first. Yep – I was so right. His jeans were indeed about as tight as they could get and still allow him to sit down. Every curve of his ass was… please don’t turn around and let me see what he was… He did. The large bulge beckoned me to caress it.
I put my hands behind my back and clasped them together. They were not to be trusted.
He unlocked his front door. As I stepped inside – I realized that he didn’t live in an apartment. I hadn’t really paid attention. There were quite a few duplexes in town that rented to college kids, but this wasn’t one of those. This was a house, and from the looks of it, a very large house.
“You live here alone?” I scanned the spacious living room, which had a fireplace and an incredibly huge television mounted onto the wall. This didn’t look like my place when I was in college. This was a home that had been designed.
“Yeah. I stayed in the dorms my freshman year like everyone else, then my parents bought this house. They stay here too whenever they come into town.” He sounded embarrassed.
“It’s… huge. How many bedrooms?” So this is how the other half lived. This place was gorgeous.
“Four bedrooms and three and a half baths. My mother redesigned the kitchen herself. It’s state of the art, but I rarely cook. I burn water and cookies, which are the only thing I ever make in there.” His deep chuckle made me take a step further away. That shit was dangerous. I still had a few weeks before my heat came, and the last month’s was pretty horrible as I tried to avoid him as I taught him. If Monica, the piano player, hadn’t been there – I would have crumbled. Maybe I should call in sick whenever that happens, so we didn’t…
“I set up the food over there if you’re hungry.” He pointed to a large dining room table that felt completely out of place in a college kid’s house.
“I’m honestly not sure if I can even eat. I’m…”
He laughed deeply, and it washed over me. I had to stop the groan that threatened to escape. “I am too. I feel like this has some kind of momentous… This might be the most important thing I ever do. So, I’m pretty nervous.”
“You don’t seem nervous.” Fucking Alphas.
“I’m very good at pushing it down and using it. I get nervous before every game, and I take those nerves and use it as energy, you know?” He leaned against the wall, and I noticed how his hands were fidgety. Maybe he was as nervous as me.
I nodded. We had that in common. “Same with me when I was performing. That nervous energy can be very useful if you know how to use it.”
