Page 48 of You Had Me At Thirteen

‘What? I’m serious,’ I say.

‘Matilda, how long have we known each other?’ She waves her hand in the air. ‘Anyway, don’t answer that,’ she says, as she threads her arm through mine. ‘But when you’re ready, I want the full details of whatever… that was.’

Clive pulls up on the other side of me. ‘If you don’t get onto that boy soon, Matilda, I’m going to get on my knees and suck his dick for you.’

I choke on my saliva. If only he knew.

‘And leave poor Trevor? I don’t think so,’ I say with a smirk.

Clive nudges me. ‘I’m making a point. Wren is obviously into you, so why not enjoy what the man offers? You never know, you might like it.’

‘It’s not that simple, and you know it.’ I point to both of them. ‘You know what my mum and I went through with my dad, so I can’t bring myself to fall for someone like Wren.’

Clive rolls his dark eyes, clicking his tongue. ‘Sweetheart, I’m not talking about love. It’s just sex. Great sex with a beautiful man. Who wouldn’t want that?’

I shrug. I’m not so sure I can do just sex with Wren. It might only be that for him, but the way he makes me feel when he’s near me tells me that “just sex” wouldn’t be enough. How do I navigate around those feelings when he’s everything I despise?

When I reach my English classroom, I square my shoulders and stand up straighter, preparing myself for the next hour with Wren. When I walk in, he’s already seated, his arm draped across the back of the chair, one leg extending into the walkway.

‘Right, everyone, find your partners,’ Mr Hughes says as he stands from his chair at the front of the classroom. ‘As discussed, you’ll be working on your assignments today.’

I glare at Wren, waiting for him to move his leg. He rolls his eyes, then sits forward so I can take my seat next to him.

‘Dick,’ I say under my breath, but loud enough that he can hear.

‘Tease.’

I snap my head towards him, as my mouth twists into a scowl. ‘You—’

‘Matilda?’ Mr Hughes brings me back into my body.

‘Yes, sir?’

‘Is there a problem?’

I shake my head. ‘No, sir.’

‘Good, then let’s get on with it. Where are your notes? Come on, get it together.’ He snaps his fingers as he motions for me to pull my stuff from my bag.

Doing as I’m told, I pull my laptop out and place it on the desk in front of me. Wren has his head down, his arms draped across the table as he rolls a pencil between his fingers.

‘What do you want to talk about today?’ I say, my eyes on my laptop as I wait for anything other than filth to come from his mouth.

He leans in close to me. ‘How about how much of a little tease you are? We could replay our romantic moment in front of the class.’

I snort. ‘Romantic? What would you know about romance?’

He lifts his chin, a smirk on his face. ‘Wouldn’t you like to know?’

‘Not really,’ I say. ‘I’d rather get hit by a bus. Anyway… can we be serious for once?’

‘Fine,’ he says, and slumps into his seat, tapping the pencil on the table.

After I’ve rattled off a few different topics, Wren’s mood improves. I opted for a poetic piece for my final, so I pull up some poems on my screen then turn to Wren.

I’m glad we get to write separate pieces as I’m not sure we’d ever agree on anything. Wren turns towards me, our knees almost touching, so I clear my throat in order to compose myself. His scent mixed with his magnetic energy reaches out to me, drawing me towards him until I don’t know where I end and he begins.

I have to take a sip of water just to swallow. A small smile plays on Wren’s lips, telling me he knows what he’s doing, and I’m playing right into his trap like a good little mouse.

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