Page 102 of I Can't Help It

And there’s Luke.

His caramel eyes are wide as they meet mine. “He already knew!”

“What?” I blink at him. “What are you talking about?”

“Wyatt already knew there was something going on between us,” he clarifies, shaking his head. “I told him that we have feelings for each other, and he wasn’t surprised at all. He already knew, but he was just waiting for me to finally say something!”

Well, so much for sneaking around and trying to keep it a secret…

“And you were right,” Luke says, tucking a few strands of hair behind my ear, “Wyatt doesn’t want you back. He was telling me stuff to mess with my head, so I would come clean about liking you, but that’s it.”

I slip my arms around his waist. “And? Was he upset like you were worried about?”

“Yeah, but only because I didn’t tell him sooner.” The backs of his knuckles coast along my jawline. “Otherwise, he was really chill with the idea of us dating.”

“Does this mean you’re going to ask me out?” I tease, watching him expectantly. “Because I’m pretty sure dating suggests multiple dates, and we’ve technically only had one date.”

“It’s going to be hard topping that one date,” he murmurs, leaning in until his forehead touches mine. “But I guess we’ll just need to go on lots of dates and try our very best.”

I hum my approval as his hands rest on my hips. “I like this plan.”

He gives me a little squeeze. “Good, because I like you.”

“I liked you first.”

“I like you most.”

Any reply I could’ve offered is lost when Luke captures my lips with his. I match the pace he’s set, kissing him back nice and slow, but I’m also very thorough. And so is Luke.

He deepens the kiss with a quiet sigh, then turns us around and guides me backward until I’m leaning against the bathroom’s sliding door. His hands move to the sides of my neck as his mouth continues to explore mine, and I let my own hands wander under his shirt like I had wanted to do earlier.

His skin is hot as I run my fingers over the well-defined torso that’s been kept hidden from me, and Luke immediately tenses under my touch. But since I can’t tell if it’s a good kind of reaction or a bad kind, I yank my hands away from his abs. “I’m sorry,” I breathe out, forcing my lips to leave his. “Was that too much? I didn’t—”

“It’s okay,” he interrupts with a hoarse laugh, “you’re okay. I just wasn’t expecting you to—dang. Um, maybe we should leave that off the table for now. As much as I loved how it felt, my self-control is always lacking when it comes to you, and I don’t want to rush anything before the time is right.” His hands slide down my arms, causing warm tingles to chase through me. “Plus, we still need to take care of those other dates first.”

“Of course, how could we forget about those other dates?” I raise an expectant eyebrow at him. “So…?”

“So,” he echoes, lacing his fingers through mine, “would you go out on a date with me, Ava?”

“Hmm…” I pretend to think about it. “Okay, I’ll go out on a date with you, but only under one condition.”

“Oh yeah?” he asks, tilting his head to the side. “And what condition would that be?”

I tap my thumb against the side of his hand. “After the date is over, you can’t try to convince me that we don’t belong together.”

“Ouch,” he says with a wince, “I guess that’s fair.”

“Is this you agreeing to my one condition?”

“It is.” His gaze becomes serious. “I will never try again to convince you that we don’t belong together. Nothing can stop the way I feel about you, I promise.”

I don’t know if it’s possible, but I think I might be falling for him even more.

“Well, how can I say no to that?” I smile before leaning forward to kiss the corner of his chin dimple. “You’ve got yourself a date.”

EPILOGUE

Luke

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