Page 141 of Fostering Chemistry
“For?” I asked.
“For me to feel the way I do.”
Oh.
My breath stilled, with my hand against the muscled wall of his chest. I wanted to look into his endlessly deep blue eyes, but I knew that would make it harder for him.
“I don’t think regular rules apply here. To any of this,” I said softly.
His head lowered, his forehead pressing against mine.
“I love you,” he said, the words faint but clear. “I know it’s too soon, but?—”
My heart beat painfully hard in my chest as I brought my finger up to his lips, stilling his words. Did he really mean that? I knew whatIfelt for him—for all three of them—but I didn’t think anyone would return the feeling. As he said, it was too soon.
Except, I knew how I felt, so maybe I could trust what he felt. “It’s not,” I said. my head still buried against his shoulder. “I feel it, too.”
“You do?”
The surprise in his voice spoke of the wounded man he used to be. And made my heart ache. But mostly my heart was just full. Full of love. For him. And for two others.
“I love you, Cody.”
He held me tighter. And when I tilted my face up, his lips met mine. The kiss meant more now that we had said it. Now that we both knew how the other felt.
I sank into his arms and wanted the kiss to go on forever. And it did. For quite some time.
When he finally released me, I was dizzy with emotion and happiness.
“I love you,” Cody said, louder this time. As if now that he’d said it once, it was easier to say it again. “Don’t tell the others, okay?”
I was a little surprised by that. It seemed like the four of us had been sharing everything lately. But I nodded, too content with being in his arms to object.
The nightbefore my last final exam, there was a tap at my bedroom door. I opened it to find Aaron standing there, and just like that, some of the tension and stress left my body.
“Is the coast clear?” he asked in a stage whisper.
I couldn’t help laughing. “Do you mean out in the hallway or in my room?”
He grinned and stepped inside. “Since Diego’s down in the dining room and Cody’s at practice, I certainly hope the coast is clear in your room.”
I shut the door after him. It still amazed me sometimes that a man like him wanted to spend so much of his time with me. I certainly wasn’t ever going to take that for granted.
“How did your test go?”
“I’m pretty sure I aced it.”
“Way to go!”
I grinned. “Do I get a kiss for that?”
“Gladly.”
He pulled me into his arms and claimed my mouth slowly and thoroughly.
I was dizzy and turned-on when he finally released me. “Wow. Um, you’re very good at that.”
He shrugged. “No, I’m not.”
