Page 119 of Collide
He puts his hand high on my thigh. Touching isn’t something I expected him to initiate, but his brevity is shining through in his car, but it’s obvious what he’s hoping for when he faces me at a red light. I guess my accountant hypothesis has been proven null.
A car honks behind us, and he accelerates but doesn’t remove his hand. “I have you now, don’t I?”
Did he?
My eyes dart to the window to watch the familiar streets run by. It isn't an SAT-level question, and I’m sure he meant it more in the literal sense, but I can’t shake the strange feeling in the pit of my stomach when the campus finally approaches.
I find myself nodding, keeping the plastic smile perfectly poised. The only plus to the situation is the heat that blows through the vents, warming my freezing limbs. When he parks outside Iona House, I pry my eyes from the windshield, and the face staring back at me is expectant.
The heavy knot in my throat doesn’t go down when I swallow.
I shove every thought of Aiden written on it. Every kiss and touch, all the ones he said I wouldn’t forget, I desperately try to push it all out of my head when Oliver asks, “Can I kiss you?”
40 | AIDEN
KIAN’S HOWL PIERCES my ears as he flips off Eli in a celebratory dance.
When he strolled in a few minutes ago, he snatched the controller out of my hand and started playing the game. I didn’t put up much of a fight when he took it because there’s only one thing on my mind tonight. Rather, one girl.
Don’t go.
I won’t pretend that those two words didn’t slide to the tip of my tongue when I heard about her date. Luckily for me, Kian had already told me about her plans.
Now, It’s impossible to pull my mind off her date, especially when the animated hockey player on screen is Lukas Preston. Talk about kicking a man when he’s down.
The doorbell rings loud enough to be heard over Kian’s shouting and my depressing thoughts.
“It’s the pizza guy.” Eli makes a move to get up.
“I got it.” I’m up before he can leave me with a hyper Kian. The bell goes off again as I pull the door open.
A soaked Summer stands on the porch.
“You were right, she says, resting her hands on her hips, chest heaving. I’m speechless, staring at her drenched figure. “My date tried to kiss me.”
The heat that radiates off my body feels charged with violence. Apparently, my little speech to her didn’t dampen my jealousy.
She rolls her eyes. “Calm down, nothing happened.”
When I swallow my throat feels stripped raw. “Why not?”
“Because I couldn’t stop thinking about you. Because every time he complimented me or touched me, I wished it was you. Because when we were in his car and he leaned in, I told him there’s someone else, and I ran straight here.”
The revelation grips my heart. “You ran here in the rain?”
She nods, droplets falling from her eyelashes onto her cheeks, making her look like a wet dream. I take a step closer to her because I’m pretty sure I’ll combust if I don’t touch her right now. I slowly brush away the water droplets on her cheeks.
“Are you done pretending, Summer?”
“You tell me.” She takes hold of my shoulders, and our lips collide with a burst of fireworks.
I waste no time lifting her up, allowing her to wrap her legs around my waist. Pressing her against the door frame, I devour her mouth in a reverent kiss, the sound of rain and the whipping wind becoming a faint background noise to the sweet sounds that fill my mouth. She tastes likemine. She always has.
She reciprocates my desperation, clutching me tightly when my hand sinks into her hair, angling her perfectly against my mouth.
“Aid—Oh—that is definitely not the pizza guy.” Dylan’s voice fills the entryway.
“Finally,” Kian mutters.
