She grinned. “That’s what you were hoping for, at least.”
I chuckled. “There she is.”
“There who is?”
“That playful, confident woman stuffed into the body of a self-conscious college girl.”
She sighed as I slid down underneath the comforter with her.
“You have to learn to own your actions, no matter how they make others feel. You can’t be so scared to walk around in this world. It’ll eat you alive if you are.”
She nodded. “I know.”
“You got uncomfortable. I saw that and stopped. Don’t apologize for that. Talk to me about why. Don’t apologize. Just explain so I can better understand.”
“I’m a virgin, Max.”
She blurted out the words so quickly it made my eyes widen.
“Well, that’s one way to do it, I guess.”
She sighed. “I’m sorry. I just--I’ve never been in this situation before and I’ve never felt these things for anyone before and I’ve never had my clothes taken off or anything before and it just--just got--”
I let her ramble until the words finally came to her.
“I got overwhelmed and wasn’t sure what came next,” she said.
I nodded. “I wasn’t sure, but I had a feeling.”
“When did you have that feeling?”
“The first time I kissed you.”
She sighed. “That bad?”
I snickered. “Trust me, I’ve known plenty of experienced girls who were terrible kissers.”
She winced. “How many girls have you been with?”
“Bad question to ask.”
“I mean, you know I’m a virgin. Wouldn’t hurt to know what number I am.”
“Dani…”
“Max.”
I snickered. “There’s that confident voice again.”
She looked me straight in my eyes. “Am I just another number in your life?”
Her question caught me off-guard, and now I was the one struggling with what to say. So many things were swirling around in my head. Like how much of an oaf I was for letting my cock dictate what came next. I had asked her for too much too soon. This girl was nowhere near ready for the shit that came with me. Then again, I always got what I wanted.
And what I wanted was her.
“Dani, I don’t know what you are to me right now.”
Her voice fell flat. “How romantic.”