Faker - Sarah Smith Page 0,88
he gestures me back. I sit down on the bed. We’re an awkward sight for sure. He’s perched at the head; I’m at the foot. My hair is a tousled mess, and I’m down to my sports bra and shorts. He’s still shirtless.
“Eli’s still out of town? No, it’s fine. I’ll be there. Give me fifteen minutes, okay? Hang tight.”
He hangs up, and I force a smile. I’d rather cry in frustration at how our night is ending, but I want to maintain some degree of civility.
“My sister is stuck on the freeway with a flat tire and needs me to help her put on the spare. I guess her boyfriend’s work trip ran long; otherwise, she’d be calling him.”
Now I feel like a baby for being upset. “Do you need me to help? I can add it to the list of girlfriend duties.”
He shakes his head and laughs. “It’s okay. It’s dark now, so it wouldn’t be safe to have a bunch of people standing at the side of the freeway.”
I pull down the strap of my sports bra, giving him a view of more flesh. “You sure I can’t convince you to stay for a bit longer?”
He surveys my body with hungry eyes, then ends with a pained smile, like he’s seriously reconsidering.
“I’m joking. You will not leave your sister stranded on the side of the freeway for sex. That’s unforgivable.”
“I can always beg for forgiveness.”
I throw my head back in amused exasperation. “No way in hell. Go help your sister.”
He throws on his shirt, I throw on mine, and we hustle downstairs. “You have no idea how sorry I am to have to leave like this. Believe me, I don’t want to,” he says.
“Oh, I know. The front of your pants is proof of that.”
He glances down and blushes, then adjusts his shorts. I press up against him, pushing a kiss to his lips.
“Starting tomorrow, we’ll have all the time in the world,” I say. “I can wait one more night.”
He pulls on his sneakers with a grin that makes me suddenly question if I have the willpower to wait.
“I’ll make it up to you,” he says. “We’ll spend a couple hours at the reunion, then we’ll leave and pick up where we left off.”
Just when I think he’s headed for the door, he lunges back and pulls me to his mouth. We’re a tangle of tongues, saliva, and growls.
“We’ll fill out that form too. We can hand it in on Monday.”
“I love it when you talk dirty,” I say against his lips. “Go.”
I finally pull him off my mouth by his hair. It’s a battle against every natural urge to drag him back to my couch and finish what we started. His hands are glued to my hips, his fingers digging into the soft flesh. He finally releases me.
I fetch him two giant containers of pansit. “Give one to Cal when you see him on Monday.”
He frowns. “How did you know?”
“I saw you bring him lunch a while back. And then Cal spotted me and told me everything. That’s sweet of you, Tate.”
His eyes fall to the ground, and he shrugs. “Just trying to be decent.”
“You’re more than decent. You’re amazing.”
His smile is all I see before he heads out the door. I make my way back to the kitchen counter, gazing down at the creased relationship disclosure form. I fill in my information, leaving his blank, then tuck it into my purse so I can give it to him tomorrow after the reunion. I imagine the shocked smile on his face when he sees I’ve filled out my part already. My first romantic weekend surprise for Tate.
twenty-three
I stare at my open closet, clueless about what to wear. Do I even own an outfit that is appropriate for a high school reunion, yet still says, Hey there, Boyfriend. Fill out this paperwork, then screw me senseless?
I call Kaitlin for advice. It’s about time I fill her in anyway.
“Hey you. Long time no talk. Need me to play nurse to you some more?”
“I’m fine actually. Look, I need to tell you something. Stuff happened. I have a boyfriend.” I let out a loaded exhale. “It’s Tate.”
A long pause indicates Kaitlin is slowly processing my info dump. “What the . . .” There’s a muffled sound, then a pause. “Okay, spill.”
I give Kaitlin a quick rundown of recent events complete with gushing. “I sound like a smitten schoolgirl, don’t I?”
“A little.” There’s amusement in her tone. “So this