residence.
“Hi,” I managed to squeak.
“I wasn’t sure you were coming.” He held the door open, letting me enter first before he followed and dropped the pizza onto the counter. Buddy rushed toward me, hopping around as though he were still a puppy.
I was thankful for the distraction, and bent to pet the dog. Man, I always loved dogs. Always wanted one, too, only my stepdad was allergic, and once they divorced, my mom and I couldn’t afford the extra mouth to feed.
“So,” I said, standing after a final pat to Buddy’s rump. “What’s the lesson plan for tonight?”
Tate held up a finger, rushed to the TV, and pulled out Amelie. “We watch this without subtitles. But, to improve your listening skills, I’ll pause it at random times and you’ll have to respond to whatever dialogue line we end on.”
Oh, boy. “So, it’s like improv meets French class.”
Tate shrugged. “The final exam is a thirty-minute conversation with the professor over coffee. If we can’t improve your comprehension, you’ll never pass this class.”
Whoa. Harsh. But also true. I exhaled, scratching Buddy under the chin. “Tate…” I started quietly, but cleared my throat and added more loudly, “We need to talk.”
The plates clattered as he dropped them to the counter. His grip on the edge tightened and he looked up at me slowly. “I’m not sure I like the way that sounds.”
I ignored that statement. “Look…it’s just…I have a lot going on right now. And obviously, as you saw Friday night, I have some stuff I need to work through. It’s just not a good time to get emotionally involved with someone.” I gulped and raised my gaze to find those cerulean eyes searing through me. “Even if that someone is sweet and smart and brings me baked goods daily.” My lips lifted into a sad smile. “And this might just be easier if I find someone else to tutor me—”
“That’s ridiculous,” Tate spat, pushing off the counter and stalking toward me. I backed into the wall, bumping my head on a picture frame.
“Excuse me?”
“It’s ridiculous. We have a test next week—you’re not going to find another tutor to help you in that amount of time.” He swallowed slowly, his jaw ticking behind clenched teeth. “Look…I’ll be good, okay? That rule we established initially? I won’t kiss you unless you kiss me first? We can do that again. But don’t risk your grades because you’re afraid to be around me,” he scoffed.
I had forgotten about that rule from earlier. Unfortunately, I wasn’t exactly to be trusted, either, when it came to Tate’s lips and mine. If anything, I suspected my self-control was more lacking than his. But I did need help—this upcoming test was 20 percent of our grade for the semester. And if I didn’t keep my GPA up, my scholarship would be gone, and I’d have to return to the dorms, go back to working at Magnolia’s six nights a week, and become an RA again. This apartment was way too expensive without financial aid.
How honest could I be with Tate? Air caught in my lungs as I dragged in a breath. “I’m not nearly as worried about you behaving as I am about myself,” I said quietly, dipping my eyes to the marble floor.
The sharp inhalation he took expanded his chest. Fuck. I definitely shouldn’t have said that.
“Okay…” He sounded both thoughtful and cautious. “How about if we take things slow. Like, really slow, Snail stuck in tar, slow.”
I squinted at him, and my eyelashes created a crackled web to see through. “What do you mean?”
“I like you, and I want to spend time with you.” A smile twitched at his lips, and his dimple flickered momentarily. “I’d rather have hands off time with you than no time at all. I promise I won’t kiss you. Until you kiss me. And even when that happens, I won’t let you escalate things—not yet, at least. Not beyond kissing.”
A warm surge tingled down my arms. He would do that? For me? Kissing I could handle…I knew that. But unfortunately, it was the other stuff I really wanted. “And what if I told you I wanted more than kissing?” I whispered.
He hissed a curse. “You’re killing me here, Shelby. Which is it? What do you want?”
I swallowed. What did I want? It changed like the freaking weather. “I want you. But that’s something that I’m really not used to. And it’s scary.”
He nodded, moving toward me, taking my hand. “It’s scary for me,