Page 147 of Pretend You Love Me
I’m trembling. “I’m scared about everything. I'm a planner. I’m a rule follower. I didn’t plan this. There are so many things to worry about.”
He closes the distance between us, wraps his arms around me, and starts to pull me into his body. I press my hands against this chest. “No.”
He stiffens.
“My boobs.” I hold my body back but lean my forehead against his chest. “I’m so sore. You have no idea. Sore isn’t the right word. It’s so painful. It wakes me up at night. Sometimes it hurts to walk. I had no idea it would be this bad.”
He rubs my arm.
I look up at him and continue, “I’ve thrown up every day for the past two months. I’ve had a headache since the beginning of November. I can’t sleep. I’m starving, but nothing sounds good. And I’m horny. I’m so, so horny.”
He laughs. “I noticed.”
“You still owe me an orgasm,” I mumble. He laughs harder. He lifts my chin, so he can see my face. He doesn’t speak immediately, and then he says, “I’m here for you, one hundred percent. I’m all in. You don’t have to do any of this alone.”
I nod.
“Is this something you want?” he asks softly. “It’s your...”
I cut him off. “I do. It’s what I want.”
“Good.” He kisses my forehead. The snow whips around us, and I’m trembling.
“Let’s go inside. You’re freezing,” he says as he kisses me one more time.
Chapter Forty-Three
Kip
When we make our way inside, every eyeball is staring at us. I have my arm around her. I’m completely drenched and trying not to shiver.
“Everything okay?” Elizabeth asks.
“Yes,” Brooklyn says. She grabs my hand and leads me toward the basement. “We need to talk though without getting frostbite.”
Everyone nods and follows us with their eyes.
She shuts the door to the basement. When we get downstairs, she says, “You need to change. I’m going to wait by the fire.”
I nod and walk into the bedroom. I can’t believe how much my life has changed since a few hours ago. I throw all my wet things in the bathroom and change quickly. When I come back out, she’s warming her hands by the fire. I stand beside her and do the same.
“It doesn’t change our problems,” she says quietly. “We live far apart. We aren’t in a relationship.”
I turn to her and grab her hand. “I will talk with you about this, I promise. We will figure everything out, but let’s not talk about it tonight.”
She looks surprised.
“I’m not avoiding it. I just think we’ve had enough emotional heavy lifting for the night. Plus I owe you an orgasm.”
She laughs. “I’m glad you haven’t forgotten.”
I grin. “I’m a man of my word.”
Her face is so beautiful in the soft light of the fire; my heart’s about to pound out of my chest.
As she inches her hands closer to the fire, she scrunches her face up like she’s just remembered something. “Do I really taste and feel different, or were you just saying that?”
I raise one of my eyebrows and respond. “Yes, you do.”
