Page 105 of The Problem with Players

I heard her snicker from the other room. My favorite fucking sound.

Avery

Only the ones on my face.

Nathan

You’re killing me here, but I agree to these terms.

I stood from my bed and walked back into the hallway, then I knocked on her door.

There was a moment of hesitation before I heard her footsteps growing closer to the door. Still, she didn’t open it. “What are you doing? We’re supposed to be texting,” she whispered, as if she were nervous for all the ghosts of the house to hear us.

“Open the door, Avery.”

“What? No. I’m not going to.”

“Why not?”

“Because there’s no reason for me to open it up right now.”

“Yes, there is,” I argued.

“And what reason is that?” she asked.

“I have to kiss you good night.”

There was a moment of pause from her. The door slowly creaked open, and she appeared. She combedher hair behind her ears as she stood there in her pajamas, looking as perfect as she always did.

“Hi there,” I whispered.

“Hi there,” she replied.

I stepped closer to her. She stood still.

My hands fell to her lower back, and I pulled her against my body. I moved closer, our faces almost touching. “Hi there,” I murmured.

She came a little closer. Her lips brushed against mine. “Hi there,” she replied as her eyes fluttered shut.

I placed her bottom lip between mine and bit it gently before I kissed her, taking her all in. Her back arched against my touch as her hands fell to my chest. She kissed me back, deepening our connection. I felt her smile against mine, feeling dizzy from how high I grew from her simple kisses. I never knew a simple kiss could feel so important.

She moved back slightly and pecked my lips softly before pulling away from me completely. Her hand fell softly against my cheek as she held eye contact. “Good night, Nathaniel,” she said with a bit of flirtation.

I rubbed the back of my neck, wanting nothing more than to kiss her more, but not wanting to push it too much. We had all the time in the world for our mouths to find their way back to one another. Maybe our hearts could do the same.

I wasn’t in a rush at all.

“Good night, Coach,” I replied.

I headed back to my room, already looking forward to kissing her good morning.

I wasn’t sure if it was exactly friends-with-benefits. I’d call it friends-with-kisses, but I’d take it. I’d take whatever I could get from that woman. Friends-with-kisses was good enough for me because it held two of my new favorite facts. Avery and I were friends. And we’d sometimes kiss.

I’d call that a win.

29

NATHAN

---