Page 49 of Savage Rose

“You absolutelywilltake it.”

“But—”

He grasps my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “But nothing. It’s yours.” His mouth hovers an inch from mine, and I breathe in his exhale. The pretty little hazel flecks around the pupils of his eyes mesmerize me and make me give in to his demand.

“Okay.” I rake my teeth over my lower lip, and his gaze follows, hungry.

He rasps, “I need to taste your lips again,” and then his mouth is on mine. I sag against him, mindless of the fact that my aunt and uncle are in the next room.

He overrides all my good senses. Or maybe it’s that I’m still in disbelief that he wants to be with me like this. The kiss starts soft but quickly escalates when our tongues tangle. He grips the back of my head in his hand, threading his fingers through my hair, securing me where he wants me. My mind spins with the riot of feelings roaring through me.

He groans as he breaks the kiss. “I could do this all day, but I have to get to that meeting.” He nuzzles my nose. “Unless you tell me I can come up to your room. Then, all bets are off.”

I wet my lips and glance in the direction of the dining room where my aunt and uncle are talking in hushed voices. “Not happening right now.”

He winks. “I didn’t think so.” He leans in to kiss me again, just a touch of the lips, like he can’t help himself. “When you didn’t respond to my texts this weekend, I hoped your phone was good and dead and you weren’t just hiding from me. I even went for a run yesterday, hoping to see you.”

“Really? No, I wasn’t avoiding you. I’ve just been thinking a lot and didn’t have a working phone.” My brain scrambles to keep up with this new, sweet Xander.

“Tell me you were thinking about me.” His voice is husky, the sound of it making my heart do a tiny leap.

“Maybe a little.”

His lips curve into a broad grin. “That’s a good start.” He cups my face in his hand, skimming his thumb across my lips. “So, your old phone is definitely done.”

I shrug. “I think so. The rice didn’t seem to work. We were going to go out after I got done with cross-country practice tonight and pick something out.”

“Now you don’t have to. Let me know if you need help setting it up. And—” He pauses to swallow. “I wanted to apologize for Aria. I spoke to her like you asked me to. She thought she was doing something funny by taking the bracelet.”

I chew on the inside of my mouth. “I’m not convinced that it was done to be funny.”

“She didn’t hear the part about your mom giving it to you.”

I purse my lips, studying him. He starts to grin, and his dimple pops out, making me soften. “How about if I acceptyourapology and reserve my judgment of her for when she explains herself to me directly?”

His lips twist. “You might end up waiting a while for that. She admitted to me that she felt like shit about it, but I don’t know if she’d say the same to you. She’s not the type to spill all of her secrets. She hides a lot underneath that bitchy exterior.”

Chapter 33

In English, Beau pokes me in the side when Mrs. Harden turns her back to write something on the board. “You looked a little rough after your practice on Saturday.”

I hadn’t realized anyone had been paying attention to me.

He seems to read my expression and continues, “I spend Saturday mornings in the weight room. I saw you when you came in from your run.”

“Awesome. So glad you saw that.” I chuckle and nod. “Yeah, I was ever-so-slightly hungover. You mix a mean drink, mister.”

“Potent.”

“Yeah.”

“It must suck that your team has practice on Saturday mornings.”

“Yeah, we have meets sometimes, too. I’ll have to be careful what you offer me if I ever end up at another one of your crazy parties.”

A few minutes pass while Mrs. Harden discusses the book we’re going to be reading next before Beau nudges me again.

“Whatdidyou think of the party? Other than the part where Justin decided to act like a fucking asshole.”

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