Page 46 of Pinkie Promise

Feeling a little faint, I press one of my wrists against my forehead. “That’s what all of my boyfriends say to me,” I whisper, and his deep chuckle reverberates into my chest. I cautiously weave the fingers of my other hand through his thick dark hair and a low sound leaves his throat, encouraging me to tug at him even harder.

“I love your smart mouth,” he murmurs, kissing up the side of my throat and over the rosy surface of my cheek.

“Thank you,” I whisper back to him.

He smiles down at me and then kisses the tip of my nose.

I wait for him to kiss my mouth but he just continues looking down at me like he’s waiting for something.

Suddenly I remember that when I last saw him at the rink I had told him that I would explain my extremely inconvenient long string of trauma to him, and the thought of that makes me groan loudly. I press my head into his chest and give him a little thump on the bicep.

He’s going to make me earn this kiss, I think to myself.He’s trying to build trust between us.

He strokes tenderly at the back of my hair, as if he can tell that I’ve come to this realisation.

I kick off my shoes, catching Hunter’s attention, and he leans down for a moment so that he can stand them neatly beside his door.

Such a cutie, I think to myself as he stands upright again.

“You’re going to want to sit down for this shit-show,” I mumble against him, and two seconds later I’m flat on my back on top of his dark comforter. He eases his hips between my thighs and holds his body over mine. His forearms are pinned on either side of my head and his pupils have dialled out into total blackness.

“Or we could just lie down like this,” I choke out. “Th-this also works.”

He presses his solid chest down against my breasts and my eyes roll into the back of my head.

“Start talkin’,” he demands, his gaze still burning into mine.

“The reason why I was freaking out on the ice,” I whisper, as the heat from his chest begins burning its way down to my core. “The reason why I’m a little on edge these days… For the past three years at Carter U I’ve been the star flyer for the cheer team,” I tell him, closing my eyes so that I can actually focus on what I’m saying, instead of his giant sexy shoulders. “I’ve been the cheerleader who’s at the top of the centre pyramid. You get thrown around a lot because you’re flexible and lightweight, but the girls underneath you are supposed to be able to catch you.”

I shake my head slightly and press my thumb firmly between my eyebrows.

“Some of the girls who used to be on the comp team graduated last summer so we needed some new girls to take on their positions and… one of the girls that got picked kind ofhasto be on the team because… it doesn’t even matter. Long story short? She’s a freshman who couldn’t hold me up, and she ended up dropping me so many times that I ended up getting a concussion. Twice.”

I open my eyes and see that Hunter’s body has stilled entirely.

“Obviously, concussions aren’t amazing for your health because they can have potentially lasting negative effects. Carter U doesn’t want a legal nightmare or, you know, a dead cheerleader, so I was benched from the team to prevent ‘further incidents’.”

Hunter’s eyebrows crease in the middle and he pulls a slightly pained expression as he moves one hand to caress over my hip.

“Baby,” he murmurs, before pressing a kiss to my cheek. I wrap my arms around the back of his neck and clutch him tight, having never felt this kind of unconditional sympathy before. “Baby, that isn’t fair. You shouldn’t be the one getting benched. Why the hell would they keep that other chick on your squad?”

I swallow thickly and whisper, “If I tell you, you can’t tell anyone.”

He lifts his body and nods, his palm roaming up to massage my ribcage.

“She’s the daughter of Carter U’s president,” I whisper, and he closes his eyes as if he instantly understands the predicament. “But because I’m no longer on the team it means that the sport scholarship I thought I’d get for my Master’s is obviously no longer on the cards for me, which is why I’m busting my ass off for a grant from my department. Only the deadline moved up and my referee isn’t getting back in touch with me, so who the hell knows if I’m actually going to be able to get it.”

I try to just laugh it off but Hunter’s serious expression shows me that he isn’t buying my faux amusement for one second.

He clears his throat and rumbles, “I have some ideas that could help.”

I quickly look away from him, pretending to ignore that statement completely.

“It’s my responsibility,” I say in as strong a voice as I can manage. “I can’t… ask for help. It’s not how I was raised.”

He frowns deeply and then wraps both of his forearms behind my neck. My head lolls backwards and his eyes drop to my throat.

“Where’s all of this ‘responsibility’ stuff coming from?” he asks me quietly, before pressing his warm mouth against my neck. An unplanned whimper escapes my throat and he grunts so hard that I have to clench my thighs.

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