Sex, I can do. But Cam wants more than that. And I don’t know if my heart can handle giving it to him.
But at the same time… won’t Cam, of all people, understand?
As if reading my thoughts, he reaches out, cradling the side of my face and gently wiping away a bead of sweat from my temple with his thumb. “You say I make you feel safe? The thing is, Sin, I feel safe with you too.”
Oh, goddamn it.
I would dare any woman not to kiss him after that.
Whatever fears I have about my inability to handle a relationship suddenly become so much less important than pressing my lips to his. I’ve wanted to do this for weeks, and his words just broke a dam I didn’t even realize was overflowing.
Cam makes a startled noise as our mouths meet, but he quickly wraps his arms around me, pulling me against him. God, he’s all muscle, which I could tell by looking at him—he’s broad-shouldered, solid, and his t-shirts stretch across his chest and biceps—but seeing it and feeling it are two entirely different things.
My hands roam all over his body, trying to memorize the feel of him in case we never get the chance to do this again.
Cam kisses quick and fun and dirty, which doesn’t surprise me at all. His tongue slides into my mouth and tangles with mine, making heat rush through my veins. Fireworks explode inside my stomach, killing off the damn butterflies as sparks ricochet through my body.
Good. Who needs butterflies anyway. This is way better.
We take a few steps back, and the next thing I know my back is thudding against a tree, and Cam’s leg is sliding between mine. This is a bad idea, but I don’t want to stop. My blood is hot and sparking, and we’re grinding up against each other as our heartbeats pound in a synchronized rhythm. Fuck, he’s good at this. Confident and commanding and—
There’s laughter from farther up the path, and we both jump, tearing away from each other. Cam’s mouth is red, his lips swollen, and his chest is heaving. I can see the outline of his cock through his gym shorts, and my pussy clenches in response.
It’s a good thing the approaching group is being loud, otherwise there’s no damn way I would’ve heard them. We could’ve been caught with our pants down.
Possibly literally. I wasn’t exactly thinking clearly.
I can’t believe I got that carried away in public. I’ve never been this impulsive before. First it was sex in the alley, then in a damn alcove in a school hallway, and now I’m making out on a hiking trail—what’s gotten into me?
The group of people coming down the slope are also students. I recognize them from around campus, although I don’t know their names. That’s pretty standard for me. Despite my promises to myself to get to know more people at the academy, I mainly stick with the ones I’ve already met. They all know Cam though, and they say hi as they pass by, exchanging some quick small talk before moving on.
Once they’re gone, he and I look at each other. I can feel my face heating up, and his cheeks flush a little too. All I really want to do is shove him against that tree and pick up where we left off, but the tiny shred of rational thought I’m clinging to makes me resist that idea.
I’m not opposed to a fun hookup, but only if it’s clear that’s all there is to it. And with Cam, that wouldn’t be the case.
He has feelings for me.
And I have feelings for him.
Which, if I were a normal girl, would make us perfect relationship material. But because I’m me, it just makes me seize up in terror.
“Should we, uh, move on?” Cam asks, gesturing up the trail.
“Yeah, good idea.”
He shoots me a lopsided smile before turning and heading up the path, subtly adjusting his pants. I try not to think about that, or how good his ass looks as he walks up the incline. Or the way my body came alive when he touched me, or the way my heart seems to open up every time I’m around him.
Oh, sweet baby Jesus.
I’ve known the whole time that I’m in over my head with this magic academy thing. But I’m only just now realizing… I’m in way over my head romantically too.
Chapter 20
The Circuit doesn’t seem to find anything, or at least, there aren’t any arrests