Page 57 of All Along

“I protected myself. I stayed away from home as much as possible. Why do you think I spent all my free time in the library?”

“Not all of your free time. You used to pal around with Sophia, Chloe, Nova, and Paisley. The five of you were a menace.”

“My friends are the best.” She glances around the library. “But this is my favorite place.”

“We had a lot of good times here.”

I giggle. “Because your math skills didn’t improve no matter how much tutoring I gave you.”

Guilt flashes in his eyes before he glances away. I gasp.

“Were you lying to me?”

He shrugs. “I may have exaggerated how bad my math skills were to get you to tutor me.”

He did? Caleb Emerson – the cutest boy in high school – wanted to spend time with me?

“You could have just asked me out.”

“You never went on dates. You told any boy who approached you no before they could open their mouth.”

I slap his shoulder. “Because I was waiting for you to ask me, silly boy.”

His hand massaging my neck freezes. “You were?”

“Duh. Why do you think I let you kiss me?”

“Because you were my friend and worried about me enlisting in the Army.”

“I was worried about you enlisting. I worry about you all the time when you’re away.” It takes effort but I keep my gaze on his face and don’t drop it to look at his injured leg. “But I wouldn’t let just any boy kiss me.”

His blue eyes warm. “I’m glad you let me kiss you.”

I bat my eyelashes at him. “Maybe I’d let you kiss me now.”

“Here? In the library? Where we could get caught?”

I bite my bottom lip. “Are you afraid, soldier boy?”

“I’m not a boy,” he growls before his lips meld to mine.

I open for him and his tongue thrusts into my mouth. I cling to his shoulders as his mouth explores mine. He uses his hand on my neck to tilt my head and dives in deeper.

He lifts me up and places me on his lap. I straddle him and I can feel his hard length against my core. This is better than anykiss I’ve had in the library before. What am I saying? Every kiss with Caleb is better than the previous one.

Caleb’s phone vibrates in his pocket and I jump at the unexpected intrusion. He ends the kiss and leans his forehead against mine as we catch our breath.

“I need to answer the phone. It could be one of your friends. They’re worried about you. But make no mistake about it, we will be finishing this when we get back home.”

“You won’t hear me complaining.”

He taps my ass and I get the hint and stand. I grab the book I was pretending to read.How To Knit a Mermaid.No wonder Caleb didn’t believe I was reading.

“There,” he says as he tucks his phone back in his pocket. “Your friends know you’re safe.” He holds out his hand to me. “Ready to get out of here?”

“Should I make sure the coast is clear first?”

He chuckles. “We haven’t done anything wrong. We don’t need to flee.”

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