Page 47 of Trusting Tanner
“No?” He grinned.
“No,” she said breathlessly. “I think it’s best if we take things slow.”
Disappointment filled him. He hadn’t been with a woman in months, and he wanted Juliana in a way he’d never wanted anyone before. “Okay, no pressure.” Rolling to the side, he wedged himself against the back of the couch so he was positioned behind her, and then he draped his arm over her. “When you’re ready, I’ll be ready.”
“Seriously?”
“What?” Alarm bells went off in his head. What had he said wrong?
She twisted around until she was lying on her side facing him. “Do you have like a mental list of the perfect things to say? Because you are always saying the right things at the right time.”
He blinked, stared at her for a second, then laughed. “No. I’m just speaking the truth.”
“Well, thank you.” She snuggled closer, burying her face against his chest like she’d done at the park during the movies. They hadn’t even kissed that night, but then, like now, he knew he wanted to spend a lot more nights holding her.
He placed a kiss to the top of her head. “What do you want to do today?”
She gave an awkward shrug. “Honestly, I’d be fine staying like this for a while.”
“Me, too.” He pulled her closer.
Chapter Fifteen
Juliana had spent the day at Tanner’s apartment. They’d taken a nap, which had been glorious, watched movies, ordered food, and talked. And there had been a lot of kissing. She was sure her lips would be numb for days, but it was worth it.
She unlocked her door and stepped into the room. Rebecca jumped up from her bed the second she saw her. “You didn’t tell me Tanner was the guy you’ve been seeing.” Her tone was accusatory and argumentative.
“I didn’t realize you knew him. Or that it mattered.” She took her cell phone from her pocket and set it on the desk. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on edge.
“Have you slept with him yet?” Rebecca demanded, arms crossed.
“That’s really none of your business.” What was with her and sex? Didn’t she ever think about anything else?
“I’ll take that as a no.” Rebecca smirked. “Did he tell you about us?”
Counting slowly to ten in her mind, she turned to face her roommate. Her stomach was a tightly wound ball of dread, and each passing second made the knot clench more. “He told me you two met at a party.”And you’re a bat-shit crazy stalker who won’t leave him alone.
Rebecca huffed and rolled her eyes. “Is that all he told you?”
Unease coiled inside of her, quickly morphing into something bitter that had nausea rising hot and fast in her throat. “Is there more?” She sat on her bed and tucked her shaking hands under her legs.Please don’t let there be more.She wouldn’t be able to handle finding out Tanner had lied to her. Or that she’d been dumb enough to fall for another guy like Zach.
“A lot more.” Rebecca sat on her own bed, facing Juliana. “We’ve hooked up. Quite a few times. In fact, any time he needs to get off, he calls me.”
Oh God.Juliana bit down on her bottom lip to stop it from trembling. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing all of this to be some horrible nightmare. But when she opened her eyes, Rebecca was there, fake compassion in her gaze. A bubble of anger ruptured inside of her.
“I’m his go-to girl for that kind of stuff.” She gave a smug smile.
She’s lying. She has to be lying.Juliana leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and dropping her face into her hands. Tears burned her eyes, and she couldn’t swallow around the lump in her throat, which was threatening to choke her.
“When I’m here texting and then I suddenly get up and leave? It’s because of Tanner,” Rebecca continued.
Christ, she actually sounded proud of the fact she was nothing but a booty call. Juliana wrapped her arm around her stomach and inhaled through her nose, praying she wouldn’t blow chunks all over the floor. Tanner had sworn on his life he’d never slept with Rebecca. Why would he lie to her? Why would all of his friends lie to her about Rebecca stalking him? The only explanation was that Rebecca was the liar here. But why? She had nothing to gain by doing this, did she?
“It’s a good thing you haven’t slept with him, and if I were you, I wouldn’t. I’d stay far away from him, because he’ll only use you for sex. Believe me, I know.” She stood and grabbed the tube of lipstick Juliana had given her and applied a thick coat. She smacked her lips together. “He’s not the settling down type. I’ve been trying for almost a year now to get him to commit, and he won’t.”
Juliana put her head between her legs, breathing deeply. This was not happening again. It wasn’t. Slowly, she lifted her head to glare at her roommate.
“I’m sorry you had to find out like this, but it’s better you know now, before you do something you might regret,” Rebecca said.
