Page 41 of Sin

My breath catches in my throat. His hand moves slowly, hesitantly, to brush a stray lock of hair behind my ear. The little touch sends a shiver down my spine. His face inches closer, and his breath brushes over my skin.

He pulls back suddenly, shattering the moment.

Goddamn him.

Just kiss me you obsessive, infuriating control freak.

After clearing his throat, his gaze returns to mine. “So I wanted to ask you something…”

I frown. “What?”

“Last night, when we were in bed together…” He scratches the back of his head, his cheeks darkening. “I feel like I might have… I had a dream that I was…”

A wicked thrill courses through me. So he does remember holding me last night, if only vaguely.

And I’m going to punish him for teasing me with that near kiss.

“What?” I ask innocently.

He shuts his eyes and lets out a heavy sigh. “I think I might have…cuddled with you.”

I wince. “Oh no, Ethan. Do you really think so? Cuddling…” I shake my head. “That’s really bad. A terrible sin, I think. Do you need to call your brother and have him…pour some holy water on you or something?”

His expression grows so comically exasperated that I burst into laughter. It echoes through the room, and Ethan only stands there rolling his eyes.

“Holy water,” he scoffs. “You know nothing about protestant Christianity. No, I wasn’t bringing it up because of my religion, but because of you.”

I wave a hand. “Why would a wild girl like me stress about a little cuddling?”

His frown is incredulous. “I meant because of…Mason. He assaulted you. I thought maybe you wouldn’t…want to be touched by a guy after that.”

Holy shit.

An ethereal sensation wraps around me, making the world around me buzz and blur. I just spent the night in bed with a man. Not only that, but he wrapped his arms around me and held me tightly when I tried to move away.

But my body wasn’t afraid. I didn’t even think about Mason once.

Because I was lying in Ethan’s arms, and Ethan isn’t Mason. The two are as different as bubblegum and thunderclouds.

Ethan is safe.

I swallow. “Last night was different. I trust you.”

His eyes widen minutely. He stares at me for a long moment, as if trying to puzzle out my words. Then the corners of his mouth lift, and a slow, radiant smile breaks across his face. “I’m glad.” His voice is breathless.

My cheeks warm at his sudden intensity. Shouldn’t it be a given that I trust him? He’s the most principled person I know.

“When is your first class?” he asks.

I frown. “At noon. Why?”

He grins. “Mine is at one. Why don’t we head to campus together and grab an early lunch?”

My tummy flips over. It feels like he’s asking me on a date, even though I know that’s not the case.

But I wouldn’t mind if he did. It’s time to finally admit to myself why I’ve been drawn to Ethan Harrington all these years, even when I told myself he drove me nuts.

It was a crush. One that I tried to suppress because Lily Greenwood doesn’t chase after guys who don’t like her back.

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