It was so sudden I’m still struggling to wrap my head and heart around it all.
My phone vibrates, and pulling it from my pocket, I smile when I see it’s a text from Forest. Opening the message, I let out a burst of laughter. It’s a photo of a slice of chocolate cake. Another text comes through.
F: Your favorite dessert is waiting for you.
A: Are you referring to the cake or yourself?
F: Both.
I let out another chuckle.
A: Be right there.
When I walk into the restaurant, Forest’s eyes follow me until I sit down next to him. I spare the cake a glance. “Yummy.” Then I lean over and press a kiss to his lips. “Missed you.”
Forest tilts his head. “It was weird today, wasn’t it?”
I know he’s referring to us not having the same classes. “Yeah.”
Picking up the fork, I stab a piece of the cake then hold it to Forest’s mouth. His eyebrow shoots up, and then he teases me, “You’re giving me the first bite? That’s huge. I’m taking it as a sign of commitment.”
I let out a chuckle, then say, “Open up.” After he’s taken the bite, I grin, “The rest is mine.”
Carla comes to sit down next to me and glances at the cake. “I’ll never understand how you can have dessert before a meal.”
I turn to face her. “Yumminess before nourishment. What if I choke during lunch? Then I would miss out on my cake. This way, if I die, I’ll at least leave this world with a belly full of chocolate.”
Carla laughs. “Like I said, I’ll never understand it.” She glances over the menu then asks. “What are you having for lunch?”
“I ordered two pizzas,” Forest answers. “One with pineapple for Aria so you can share the other one with me.”
“Oh, great.” Her gaze darts between us. “Is everything okay between the two of you?”
Crap, has she picked up on the vibe between Forest and me?
A frown forms between my brows. “Yeah. Why do you ask?”
“I’m just checking to make sure.” A waiter interrupts us, and Carla orders herself orange juice. She never drinks soda. When the waiter leaves, she turns her attention back to us. “I want to know when I should take cover.”
“Ha-ha,” I tease her.
Forest takes hold of my hand and presses a kiss to the back of it, then says, “We’re still madly in love.”
My eyes dart to his, and I feel my cheeks heat when I see the certainty on his face.
Our food comes, but I finish my cake before I have a slice of pizza.
Once we’re done eating, Carla says, “I’m going to the library. I want to get a head start on the assignment we got today.”
“Okay.” I smile at her. “Good luck.”
As Forest and I get up, Fallon and the rest of our group of friends come into the restaurant.
“Hey,” Forest stops to greet Fallon.
“How’s your first day?” she asks, her eyes darting between us.
“Good,” Forest answers. “One hell of a workload so far, but I’ll manage.”
“I still have all my notes and assignments from last year. I’ll email them to you,” Fallon offers.
“That would be great. Thanks.”
Fallon turns her gaze to me. “How’s your workload?”
“Not bad. We’re mostly going over the syllabus for the year in each class.”
“Lucky fish,” Fallon grumbles. “See you later.”
Forest’s hand finds mine as we walk out of the establishment, and he asks, “What time is your next class?”
“Not until three. I have two hours to kill.” I grin up at him and ask, “What time is yours?”
“Two-thirty.” He glances over the campus then changes direction to our dorm.
“Hmm…” I begin to tease him. “Why are we going to the suite?”
He begins to walk faster, and I laugh as I have to jog to keep up with him.
“I’d rather spend the time we have alone with you,” he answers as he pulls me into the building.
By the time we step into the elevator, I’m out of breath. As the doors close, we turn to each other, and while I reach up for Forest, he grabs hold of my hips and yanks me toward him. Our mouths crash together, and in a split-second, I go from being his best friend to a girl that’s teetering on the edge of falling in love.
It scares the hell out of me.
Chapter 8
FOREST
We somehow make it to my bedroom without crashing into anything. I kick the door shut behind us, and with my mouth fused to Aria’s, I push her toward the bed.
Aria breaks the kiss, and panting, she says, “Wait. Wait.” She sucks in a breath of air. “Are we doing this?”
Tilting my head, I ask, “Making out?” I nod. “Yeah, definitely.”
As I begin to lean down again, Aria places a hand against my chest and explains, “No, I mean, are we going to have sex?”