Page 3 of Hold Me Closer
She blinks wide eyes at me, prompting me to roll mine.
"Daddy has been giving us the no-sex talk for, like, four years now," I say. "Yours is way nicer than his, by the way. His is all, 'No touching my daughter in wrong ways, Mateo. It is bad.' with lots of scowling thrown in."
My dad grew up in Russia before moving here with his parents when he was sixteen. His father was a vocal opponent to the government, and they tried to poison him for it. Even though it's been decades, my dad still has this way of phrasing things that's almost painfully direct at times, especially when paired with his accent.
"Well, then, I suppose I don't need to remind you that your father's head will literally explode if you end up pregnant, now do I?" she says drily.
I giggle, shaking my head. "We aren't having sex, I promise. We aren't even kissing, Mom! Besides, Teo says he's saving himself for the one."
"And you?" she asks pointedly.
I shrug, glancing away. There's no way I'm answering that loaded question. Mostly because I'm waiting for my one, too. And my one is Teo.
But telling her that isn't going to get me out of this conversation any faster.
"That's what I thought," Mom sighs, squeezing me again. "Just don't rush into anything, sweetheart. You two have all the time in the world, okay?"
"I promise," I whisper.
"Can we go somewhereto talk?" I ask, leaning closer to Teo so he can hear me over the music pumping through the school gymnasium. Despite the decorations hanging from every available space, it still smells like sweat in here. That's not really what I had in mind for our first kiss, and we've been here for two hours already.
It's now or never.
"Yeah." He grins down at me, sliding his hand around my waist as he leads me away from the dance floor. I shiver at the way he holds me close to his big body, curling himself around me as if he wants everyone to know that we're here together.
As if they had any doubts. We're always together.
Every dance. Every football game. Everywhere, we're together. And yet…we're stilljust friends.
Maybe not after tonight.
Hopefully,not after tonight.
My stomach churns with anxiety as he leads me out of the gym and through the courtyard. The cool air brushes my skin, making me shiver.
"Are you cold, butterfly?"
"No. It feels good out here." I smile up at him. "It was getting hot in there."
He chuckles, his breath washing across the side of my face. "You look beautiful tonight. Did I tell you that?"
"Only a few times."
"Well, it's true." His gaze roams over my face, his piercing blue eyes dark and somber. He's always so serious. "You look stunning."
"Thank you," I whisper, fidgeting nervously as we stop beside the fountain.
"I should be the one thanking you." He reaches out, brushing his thumb along my bottom lip. "I'm the lucky asshole who got to spend the whole night dancing with you."
"Teo," I groan, blushing.
"It's true, butterfly." He steps closer to me, his eyes locked on my face. "Every guy at school wishes they were me because I get to spend all my time with you."
"They do not," I say, rolling my eyes even as my heart flutters. He's so damn sweet to me, but if anyone is jealous, it's every girl at school. He's gorgeous, and he plays football. His family is also loaded. And yet, he picked me—his curvy best friend.
"Yeah, they do." His lips kick up into a grin that has butterflies dancing in my stomach. "You're fucking beautiful, smart, talented, and you sing like a damn angel. I don't know why you spend all of your time with me."
"You really don't know?" I ask, staring at him intently.
