Page 68 of Matched

His finger gently brushed underneath my eyes. “You need a break.”

“I need to finish this while I’m on a roll. I want to get it sent to my supervisor tonight.”

“Have you eaten or drank anything?” When I shook my head, he frowned. “I’ll be back.” Climbing off me, he dipped down to kiss the top of my head and then disappeared. With a sigh, I returned to my work. I was almost done. Maybe another half an hour, if I was lucky.

Continuing where I’d left off, checking the highlighted sections against my work, I lost track of time again and jumpedwhen a hand appeared in front of my face. I watched as Charlie carefully stacked my project blueprints in a neat pile next to my textbook and then placed a can of Coke Zero and an energy bar in the freed-up space.

“Charlie…”

“You need to look after yourself. Eat and drink that, and when you’re finished, we can go to the snack bar, and I’ll feed you properly, okay?” He stepped away from the table. “I’m finished with my shift, but I have work I can do. When you’re finished, come and get me. I’ll text you when I’ve found a table so you know where I am.”

I was warm all over, so fucking soft for this boy who’d come along and known exactly what I needed. He could read me so well. Maybe better than anyone.

“Okay. But don’t you want to work here? There’s room.”

He shook his head. “I don’t want to distract you. I’ll see you when you’re finished.”

I climbed to my feet, shoving my chair back, and stalked over to him, throwing my arms around him and pulling him into me. Breathing him in, I stroked up and down his back over the soft cotton of his T-shirt while he placed featherlight kisses on the side of my face. Drawing back enough to meet his gaze, I smiled. “Thanks. You’re fucking amazing.”

“Shut up. Are you trying to give me a big head? It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing. Not to me.”

The pleased expression in his eyes made my smile widen, and eventually, he cracked a grin. “Okay. In that case, I’ll accept your thanks.”

We released each other, and as I watched him walk away, Jonas’ words came back to me.

You’ve caught feelings for Charlie. Strong feelings.You looked at him the way Jada looked at me when she was falling in love with me.

Falling in love.

Love.

29

“This is amazing!” Noah stared around us, wide-eyed. “I can’t believe they arranged to have the cup final at Plymouth Argyle’s ground.”

“Hearing you talk football is still weird.” Elliot shook his head. “But you’re right. I can’t believe we ended up here, either. The last game of the semester, and it’s the actual southern division cup final. The sun’s out, we have the rest of the summer to look forward to, and whether we win or lose today, we made it to the finals.”

Noah grinned. “Yep. Nothing to complain about.”

I listened to their conversation with half an ear as I followed them to the section that had been reserved for LSU supporters. So many students and members of staff had made the trip to Plymouth for this match, and due to the overwhelming interest, the LSU faculty had arranged for several coaches to transporteveryone. We’d travelled in a long convoy down the A303, past Stonehenge and then onwards until we reached the port city of Plymouth.

The team had gone down separately the night before, so I hadn’t seen Nate yet, but we’d texted for hours yesterday, throughout his own coach journey, and then again when he was in the hotel. He was sharing a room with two of his teammates, and after the match, he was booked to stay for an extra two nights so he could meet up with his new postgrad supervisor on Monday and check out his accommodation for the next semester.

That was something I was trying hard not to think about. At least right now, I had something to distract me. Something big.

“What seat number are you? I think this is us.”

Up ahead, I realised that my friends had come to a stop, and I had to dig my heels in to stop myself running into Elliot’s back. We filed into our row, where Niccolò, Leo, Levi’s boyfriend, Asher, and another guy I didn’t recognise were already seated.

“That’s Preston’s boyfriend, Kian,” Elliot whispered to me, following my gaze. “They both went to the same school as Levi, but they were in the year above him. The same age as me.”

I nodded, pulling down the seat of the plastic chair and lowering myself onto it. Now I remembered. I’d seen him around a few times, although I’d never spoken to him.

Twisting around to scan the arriving crowds, I noticed JJ filing in, along with Killian and another two older guys. Elliot was still following my gaze, and when he saw them, he gasped, sinking down into his seat as if it would make him invisible.

“Who are they?”

---