Page 113 of The Very First Night

A chuckle rolls past his lips before he presses a gentle kiss to my inner ankle, causing goosebumps to erupt over my entire body. “No, it’s a you thing.”

It takes him no time to fasten the straps around both of my ankles, but he holds my foot in his hand as his eyes meet mine in earnest.

I tense under his scrutiny, despite his intentions never having been nefarious. “What?” I ask.

“I—” He clears his throat, clearly searching for the right words to convey his thoughts. “If you don’t want to go down there, be around him, I would understand. We can hang out here and meet up with our friends in Marcus and Jenna’s room later.”

While the prospect of doing that sounds preferable to dealing with Elijah, this is Tanner’s senior year. I might not understand Greek life, not outside of what I’ve seen over the past two years, but I know that this is a night he’ll never get back if I take him up on his offer.

“I love you for that, but no. We should go—I want to go. Seeing Elijah doesn’t matter. It hasn’t mattered for a while.”

My fingers reach up to brush a stray chestnut-colored strand of hair off Tanner’s forehead, and he releases a small sigh of relief. I can see the worry lines on his face relax.

“If you’re sure?—”

“I’m sure.” I smile down at him in an attempt to give him a shred of the comfort he’s given me over the past couple years.

With a gentle hand on my calf, he leans forward and presses three soft kisses along my inner thigh, sending shivers down my spine. Then he stops, causing me to groan in frustration, and releases his hold on my leg. He stands up, discreetly adjusting the slight bulge growing in his dress slacks.

“Mean,” I huff out.

“Hey, you’re the one who doesn’t want to stay in the room. Besides, you’ve been walking around in your underwear for the past twenty minutes—you’re lucky I didn’t go higher.”

“‘Lucky’ isn’t the word I’d use.”

Tanner just laughs as he pulls me to my feet and encourages me toward the door.

Once we’re downstairs, all my anxiety melts away as Jenna comes barreling toward me. Despite living together, we haven’t seen each other much over the last week due to Marcus’s parents being in town and taking up most of Jenna’s time. The two seem to be getting very serious and, while I once might have worried about losing my best friend, I’m confident now in the fact that that won’t happen.

“Oh my God, you look amazing!” Jenna squeals as she steps back to admire my outfit, the very one she helped me pick out.

“Thanks,” I laugh. “So do you!”

“I know!” she says with confidence, flipping her long golden curls over her shoulder before looping her arm through mine and pushing us into the ballroom.

The ballroom is decorated with mismatched streamers and balloons, a clear indication that the planning committee consisted of inexperienced fraternity brothers. Despite their efforts, the space still lacks the elegance and grandeur of other events I’ve attended, but it’s a steep ask to compare a fraternity formal to any of the weddings I’ve photographed. Their effort is clear, even if it doesn’t quite land in the way they were hoping.

“Is your skin crawling?” I laugh as I turn to Jenna. As an interior design major, she is rather meticulous with design of any sort, so the underwhelming decorations must be causing her distress.

“Very much so. I tried to help, but they insisted.” She gives a quick shrug, her arm brushing against mine as she pulls me toward the bar.

I immediately notice Tanner, a drink in hand, leaning against the counter. We had discussed my decision to cut back on drinking and what that meant for this formal at length. Tonight, I’ve made the choice to indulge a bit, but not too much—no tequila shots or standing on bars for me. However, a few glasses of champagne are more than welcome.

I eagerly grab the flute of bubbly from the bartender’s hand and tug on Tanner’s sleeve, giddy with excitement to get the night moving. We weave through the throngs of people toward the center of the ballroom, where the music beckons us to dance.

His deep laugh rumbles as he presses his hand against my lower back, guiding me closer to him. “What’s got you so excited all of a sudden?” His other hand holds the frosted beer bottle, and the confident way he balances it shows years of partying and dancing at college parties.

To be honest, I feel relieved. I didn’t think I would be so indifferent toward Elijah’s presence tonight, and the fact that I can finally say that he no longer holds a place in my heart is freeing. I am truly in love with Tanner, but the lingering fear in the back of my mind over how things ended with my ex has been gnawing at me, making me worry that I will never fully move on from it.

“Can’t I just be happy to be here with you?”

“Of course you can.” Tanner’s warm breath tickles my cheek as he bends down to kiss me, his hand gently cupping the back of my neck.

A rush of tingles spreads through my body as I lean in and savor the softness of his lips against mine. With a blissful sigh, I melt into him, feeling completely at ease as we sway to the music.

After a few hours, I’m very much feeling the effects of the alcohol. Tanner seems to notice and asks, “Do you need to get some air?”

“No, I’m good. I just need to use the restroom.” I’ve been fighting the urge to break the seal all night and it’s finally caught up with me.

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