Page 88 of Tiny Fractures

“Uh-huh,” he says, and inhales again deeply. I tip my head up to look at him.

“Do I smell bad?” I feel a little self-conscious because I haven’t taken a shower yet or brushed my teeth. I probably look like a total mess, too—my hair, especially, likes to give me a hard time in the morning.

“Far from it,” he groans as if it takes him a lot of effort to get the words out. “You smell too damn good. It’s really addicting.”

“Really?” I feel all tingly at his words.

“Uh-huh.”

“You smell really good, too,” I say, closing my eyes for a moment. “Like fresh laundry that was hung up to dry in the warm summer sun. It’s so clean…” I trail off.

I open my eyes when I hear him chuckle quietly. “That sounds nice,” he says with an appreciative nod and a mischievous grin.

I smile at him. “It is. I love your smell. It’s really comforting and… manly,” I say, blushing. I wonder if there will ever come a time when I'll be able to control my face.

“Manly, huh?”

“So manly,” I nod, then close my eyes when Ronan begins to kiss my shoulder and glides his hand under my tank top to sensually stroke my back.

“Rise and shine, sexy people!” Vada’s voice becomes increasingly louder before the door to the tent is zipped open.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Ronan mumbles under his breath, and even I’m slightly annoyed.

“Hey there. Have a good night?” Vada sing-songs, wiggling her eyebrows.

Ronan sits up, grabbing his shirt and pulling it over his head. “I swear, Vada, your timing is impeccable.” Ronan’s voice is tinged with irritation.

I don’t want him to leave; if it were up to me, we’d spend the whole day in this tent just making out, but it seems Vada has other plans for us.

“Aww, so angry, Ran. Didn’t you have a fantastic night?” Vada asks, a naughty gleam in her eyes.

Ronan doesn’t answer and instead turns to me, his face softening as he takes me in. “I’m going to go change and brush my teeth. Care to take a dip in the ocean with me in ten minutes?”

I nod and smile as he plants another kiss on my forehead. I watch him move out of the tent past Vada, who sticks her tongue out at him and he shakes his head at her, chuckling.

Vada zips the tent shut as soon as Ronan is out of sight. “So? Tell me everything!” She sits down quickly. “What happened last night?” she continues like a waterfall, but her voice lowers when she asks, “Did you two… you know?”

I blush and shake my head. “No, we didn’t. Ran was a perfect gentleman.”

Vada gasps as if I had thrown away a winning lottery ticket. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything is great. Really great, actually,” I blush. “It’s just…” I trail off.

I expect Vada to chime in, but she sits silently, waiting for me to continue.

“I want to. Really badly. Really, really badly. Oh Vada, he’s so perfect, so damn sexy, and the way he touches me….”

“So, what’s the problem?”

I shrug, shaking my head. “I think I’m just scared.”

“That’s okay, Kitty Cat,” Vada says in a soothing voice. “It’s kind of a big step. I remember being scared as hell before Steve and I finally did it.”

“When did you realize you were ready?” I ask, needing some girl talk.

“Actually, I didn’t. It just kind of happened. Steve and I were hanging out together a couple of weeks after we started dating, and one thing led to another. But it was perfect that way, you know? I was afraid I’d overthink it, wanting everything to be perfect, putting too much pressure on us. I promise, you’ll know when the time is right. And in the meantime, just enjoy a really, really lengthy foreplay.” Vada smirks, then grabs her toothbrush and her swimsuit before ducking back out of the tent and zipping it closed behind her.

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