Page 98 of How We Loved

I don’t let him finish his statement as I jump into his arms and kiss him with so much anticipation, frustration, relief, and love that I can barely stand it.

He pushes me up against the wall, holding me there, and kisses me back.

My God, does he kiss me back.

The way his lips feel against mine shoots a zing of electricity through my entire body.

I can’t breathe, but right now, the need for air doesn’t exist. He’s the air I breathe, the water I drink, and the food that feeds my entire existence.

Never in my life did I expect kissing someone could do this to one’s soul, but I swear mine just blended with his in an eternal dance that’s lighting a flame that will never burn out.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Maya

Just as fast as we started kissing, he pulls back, and once I’m on my feet, he closes his eyes and turns to walk away.

“Ben!” I yell out as he opens the door, but he doesn’t even look my way as he leaves me standing here in shock.

I step outside, only to remember how truly cold it is, so I go back inside and text my dad, asking him to come get me. Our houses aren’t too far apart, and I’ve walked it before, but not this late at night and definitely not when it is this cold outside.

My dad must have not even gotten out of the car yet because he’s there faster than I thought he would be, so I make sure the barn door is shut and head to his car.

“Didn’t go so well?”

I let out a sharp laugh, then remember who I’m talking to. How do I tell my dad I just had the absolute most passionate kiss of my life with my best friend, and then he left me standing there, feeling like an idiot for kissing him?

Because that’s what I did.

I kissed him.

But he kissed me back …

I drop my head back on the seat rest and close my eyes. “It’s complicated.”

Dad puts the car in drive. “Oh, to be young again.” He lets out a light laugh. “I wouldn’t want to go back to that age for anything.”

“Seriously?”

His comment catches me by surprise.

He looks at me briefly, then puts his attention back on the road. “Growing up is hard. Relationships are hard.”

“But you and Mom didn’t have these types of issues.”

He laughs a little harder this time. “Then, you’ve never heard the full story.”

I turn to face him a little more, intrigued to hear what he has to say.

A soft grin falls over his face, and I can tell he’s thinking about mom. He always gets this starry-eyed glow about him when he does.

“Your mom was quite the firecracker”—he gives me a knowing grin—“but I don’t have to tell you that.”

My mom was something special. She would make every day memorable in her own way, always making us smile or laugh like it was her duty in life.

“Man, she used to push my buttons.” He sighs with a chuckle under his breath. “One time, she wanted to go up to Mason Creek to jump off the cliffs at the lake.”

“She did?” I ask, amazed. All I’ve been told is how dangerous that is—by her!

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