Page 27 of Falling Like This

She moans again, and I try to focus on anything else to keep the rush of blood from going to my dick.

Not working.

I’m caught up in her. These kisses. The way she controls my body.

Without realizing what I’m doing, I place my hands under her ass and lift her up. Her legs wrap around my waist as her tongue sweeps through my mouth again.

This is perfect. She is. We are.

Until her eyes flash open and she inhales sharply. She pushes on my chest. “Aaron, stop.”

Though it’s the last thing I want to do, I immediately pull my lips from hers, set her down, and take a step back.

I let this go too far.

“I’m sorry,” I say, catching my breath.

She looks down for a moment. When her eyes find mine again, they’re filled with sadness.

“Don’t apologize. It’s not your fault. I was enjoying it. I thought I was ready.”

She looks down again, and I hear what she doesn’t say.I want to be ready.

It’s this moment when I realize exactly what I need to do. I have to take a step back. I let her flirtiness take over today, and I went further than I should have. She needs to heal before we can even edge toward those lines again. We might love to blur them. Maybe want to cross them, but it has to wait now. As of this moment, I’m her best friend, and that’s it.

It doesn’t matter what I want.

Doesn’t matter that I…love her.Fuck. I do love her. I’m in love with her.

And that’s exactly why I can wait.

I give her hand a little squeeze and her eyes flash to me. My stomach sinks because I see the walls going up again. That’s the last thing I want.

“It’s all good, Beautiful. What do you say? Race you back to Joel’s?”

She stares at me for a moment like she’s trying to decode my reaction. She must like whatever she sees in my eyes, because she says, “Only if you… give me a head start.”

She yanks her hand from mine and takes off running. I watch her for a moment. She’s beautiful. That playful energy and her gorgeous, loving heart. The girl who was made for me.

“Coming, Ace?”

I take off after her, happy to see her smiling again, and pray that when she heals from this, maybe we can finally have our chance.

Chapter three

Space

Rae

Sweatpoursoutofme as my heart slams so hard I can barely breathe.

Nothing ever stays good for long.

One week since I spent the day with Aaron and finally felt like myself again. I knew it wouldn’t change everything, but I thought I was making progress. But here I am again, awake at three in the morning after reliving everything that happened at that party in my dream.

Tears burn in my eyes.

I grab my phone and am halfway through typing a text to Aaron when I drop my phone like it’s on fire.

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