“Please, just for a while. I’ll make it worth your while.” I lean down and kiss her lips softly, tugging her by the waist. I have never been exclusive with a girl before. We’re not dating, but I haven’t been with anyone else. That’s the deal with us. This should feel foreign, but with Ash, it doesn’t.
“Okay, fine, like for an hour.”
I lift her, and she lets out a squeal. “Put me down. I gotta get to class.”
I set her on her feet and smack her ass as she walks by. “Hey, kitten. Can I take you somewhere tonight?”
She looks at me over her shoulder. “Depends, Rothwell. Gonna make it worth my while?”
I chuckle as she strolls off.
* * *
“Something’s up with you two. She’s always studying withfriends,” Dylan air quotes during warm-up. “Marcy does not know who these friends are, and you haven’t been chasing ass for the last two weeks, so that can only mean you two are still at it? If this goes south—”
“Dude, we’re seriously not having this conversation.”
“So,you are hittingthat?”
I catch a breath, my hands on my hips, “Hitting that?” I catch the ball as he hauls my way. “Let’s just get our heads in the game, man.”
“You like her.” It’s a statement, not a question. He guffaws uncontrollably.
Whether I deny it, he’s got it in his head. “You need to worry about your own life and stay outta mine.”
“I can’t believe this shit. When did this happen? I mean, as far as I know, you two hate each other. One day you’re being an asshole to her at lunch, and suddenly you’re whipped.”
“I said I was sorry. To you both.”
I sit on the bench to catch my breath.
“You know what, she’s a good look on you,” Dylan says. “Don’t fuck it up.”
My friend has no idea how fucking hard I’m trying not to. A girl like Ash is too good for a guy like me, but I can’t stay away from her. She makes me feel, something I haven’t been able to do in a long time.
* * *
Bringing her here, to my special place, makes my palms sweaty, and when she spots me near the entrance and those eyes lock on mine, I feel like something inside me flips. She’s wearing a blue sweater dress and boots. Like that night I first saw her as more than just an inconvenience and a girl I liked to hate. Ash is fucking trouble, the good kind. The kind that has me eager to see her. The kind that has me ready to let someone into the part of my world nobody has seen.
“Ah, I believe we’ve met here before,” she smirks. I pull her close and plant a kiss on her lips that seems to surprise her. “You know this is a public place, right? And they all gonna see bad boy Rothwell sucking face with a commoner.”
“Bad boy, huh?” I place my hands on her hips, kissing her cheek.
“That’s all you got from that?” The way she smiles at me doesn’t just make my dick hard, it warms me up inside, and I don’t know why, but I don’t give a fuck about PDA and who sees me with her.
“Just go with it, baby,” I chuckle, leading her into the gallery. It’s not as busy as the first time she was here. There’s a small exhibition, but none of the frills.
“Ryder. Hi,” Lucia saunters over.
“Lucia, this is Ash,” I say, pulling Ash closer.
“Hey, I know you from the last exhibition. Porter’s friend, right?”
“That’ll be me.” Ash gives her a tight-lipped smile.
She scrunches her nose, “I was a bit of a bitch to you, wasn’t I?”
I look between the two women. “Not really. You were just marking your territory.” Ash laughs.