Page 27 of Love Me Steadfast
Chapter Nine
WILLIAM (AGE 14)
Tori slipsher hand in mine and leads me away from the bonfire. I don’t miss Theo’s wolfish grin or Noah’s catcall as I let her.
“You played amazing tonight,” Tori says, gazing up at me.
“Thanks.” My voice is thin with nerves. Tori has been to every post-game bonfire on the lake and last week, we kissed, but it’s not like we’re a thing. I don’t want a girlfriend. Mostly because the idea scares the shit out of me. I just want to focus on football. And passing my classes. Who would have thought high school history and English would be so fucking demanding?
At least there’s hope now that I’ve got Charlotte’s help. We’ve been meeting every Saturday for the past month. She’s so freaking smart. And patient. Even when I’m being an ass, or I zone out, or I want to quit. Sometimes we even talk. I found out she plays trumpet in the marching band but actually prefers guitar and violin. She even makes her own music. When I asked her to sing me something she clammed up, her face going beet red. It made me want to tease her about it just a little, because fuck if that blush didn’t turn my crank.
Tori pulls me behind a giant sequoia, then slides her hands to my waist. Those same nerves kick up inside me. After last week, Iwas sure she’d never kiss me again. My teeth crashed into hers and I didn’t know what to do with my tongue. It’s not like I’ve had a lot of practice kissing girls. Not after living with the McCabes these past three years. My life was a very loose homeschool program managed by Tasha, broken up by mountain bike rides with Evan, learning wilderness survival skills from Jared, and lots of football.
Tori closes her eyes and I lean down to kiss her. But I must be a slow learner because our teeth crash again. I try to recover by sliding my tongue past her lips. She makes a little whimpering noise and her hand shifts to my belt buckle. Then she glides her palm down the front of my jeans.
I suck in a breath. Fuck, I’m already hard.
But she gives a low hum, like she approves.
So maybe it’s okay?
I’m about to stop her because shit’s getting real and there will be consequences very soon if she keeps rubbing me like that, but she lowers to her knees and slips my belt buckle open.
A shock wave fires down my spine.
Wait, is she…?
Tori glances up at me through her long lashes as she slides my pants and briefs down.
Holy fucking hell. How is this my life right now?
I’ve overheard guys talking about hooking up or fooling around but no way was I expecting it to happen to me.
I reach up to brace against a low tree limb because fuck.
If her goal was to blow my mind, it’s working.
Trying to hold onto my sanity, I gaze up through the sequoia boughs, but it just makes the stars swim through the black sky.
Is she going to want me to reciprocate? I don’t have a clue how but I’m more than willing to offer. It’s only fair, right? Or does she want to fuck?
I’m definitely not ready for that.
Wait, why wouldn’t I be?
Before I can think how to ask, it’s over, and Tori rocks to her feet with a sly smile. “Let’s go back to the bonfire.”
I mumble my reply and zip up, still a little freaked out by what just happened. Because what kind of girl just drops to her knees in the fucking dirt like that? Especially when I haven’t even asked her out?
The next morning,I walk the few short blocks to school for tutoring. The air tastes like rain, and for the first time since I moved here, the sky is overcast. If I was back in Alaska, this would be a typical fall day. That or sideways rain. It’s so dry in Finn River. Definitely takes some getting used to. It even affected my throw.
At the high school, when I cross the street, a shiny red pickup truck coasts into one of the loading zone spaces in front of the entrance, its souped-up engine rumbling. As I pass, I feel the driver’s eyes on me, so I sneak a glance. The guy at the wheel is flat-out glaring.
What the fuck? I look away, but my insides feel charged.
“Poser,” the guy says to my back.
I spin around. “What did you say?”
