"Really?"
"Yeah," I said.
"We’ll go this sumr."
"It’s a date."
He squeezed my hand before releasing it, pulling up to a little hotel by the river. "Oh my god, this place is so cute."
He grinned. "Wait ’til you see inside."
Parking the truck, he made his way to my side, helping out, then grabbing our bags and taking my hand. We headed inside and Flash checked us in.
"Ready?"
"Yep," I said, following him to the elevators.
He wrapped his arm around and kissed as we rode up. We didn’t speak. Just held each other until the doors opened, and we walked to our room where Flash unlocked the door.
I walked in ahead of him and couldn’t stop a gasp. "Holy crap, this is gorgeous."
I heard the door close behind us and the thump as the bags hit the floor, then Flash was beside , his arms around as we looked out over the marina.
"You approve?"
I grinned, facing him, and looping my arms around his neck. "It’s perfect, honey. Thank you."
"Good enough to make you mine."
"Confession?" I asked, stroking the back of his neck. "I would let you do anything to , even in a tent, but this is way better."
He laughed. "Anything?"
"Yes.... Um, but..." I bit my lip. "I have sothing to tell you."
"You can tell anything, baby, you know that."
"Yes, I do, but this is kind of... well, sensitive."
He raised an eyebrow. "Then rip the Band-Aid off and just tell ."
"I’m still a virgin."
"Co again?"
"You’ll be my first," I said.
"Are you serious?"
"Yep," I said, with an extra pop on the P.
"What about that guy junior year?"
I narrowed my eyes. "How did you know about Nick?"
He smiled. "You don’t think I didn’t check up on you?"
"Nick wasn’t you," I said with a sigh. "No one I ever dated was, so nothing ever lasted very long."
"Well, then, I’m very glad you pulled your head out of your ass so I could blow your mind," he growled.
"Excuse ?" I hissed.
"You heard ."
"Are you seriously trying to pick a fight right now?"
He pulled away, dragging his hands through his hair.
"What the hell just happened?" I asked.
"I would have waited," he rasped.
"What do you an? Waited for what?"
"If I’d had any fuckin’ clue you were into , Tate, I would have waited."
"Oh, right," I whispered, my heart breaking in two as I suddenly realized how deep I’d hurt him. "Oh my god, Parker, I’m so sorry. I should have—"
"Don’t," he ordered. "Just give a minute to process."
I nodded, crossing my arms while he stared out at the water. I gave him about three minutes before panic set in. "Do you hate ?"
"Jesus, Tate." He sighed. "Of course I don’t hate you."
"I wish I could go back and change everything."
He closed the distance between us, sliding his hand to my neck and tugging forward. "Don’t go there, Tate. We’re gonna work this out, I just need a second to get over feelin’ like an asshole."
I gasped. "Why would you feel like an asshole?"
"Because I should have pushed. I should have pursued you more." He lifted my chin. "This isn’t just on you, Tate. If I’d asked questions instead of fuckin’ shuttin’ down, we could have avoided most of this. If I’d picked up on fuckin’ prom... Jesus, you were so clear!"
"I think you’re giving a little too much credit."
"My stubbornness rivals yours, baby, so I’m pretty sure I could have pushed you enough to tell the truth. Look how quickly you folded when I pressed you after seeing you for the first ti."
"To be fair, I was really tired."
He smiled, running his thumb over my bottom lip. "I’m sorry I didn’t fight for you."
"I’m sorry I didn’t make you," I said, sliding my hands around his waist.
"I forgive you if you forgive ."
"There’s nothing to forgive." I dropped my face into his chest. "This is all on ."
"I love you, Tate. From this second on, no secrets, no lies, no fear."
I raised my chin and t his eyes. "I love you too. No secrets, no lies, you got it. I will try very hard not to be afraid, but I’m kind of a natural scaredy cat."
"We’ll work on that part."
I smiled. "Okay."
"You in this with ? All the way? Forever?" he asked as he stroked my cheek.
"Forever?"
"Forever, Tate. Not fuckin’ around anymore."
I slid my hands up his chest. "You really think you can put up with for forever?"
"I wouldn’t be here if I couldn’t." His hands moved to the hem of my T-shirt and brushed the waistband of my jeans. "What about you?"
"Oh, I’ve never been able to put up with ," I retorted, and he grinned again. I wove my fingers into his hair at the nape of his neck. "I’m all in, Flash. Forever."
His mouth covered mine as his hand slipped under my shirt and cupped my breast. I let out a quiet moan as his thumb brushed over my nipple and he took full advantage of my open mouth. His tongue thrust inside, eting mine, and deepening the kiss.
He broke our connection briefly to remove my shirt, then went back to the assault on my mouth as he unhooked my bra. My hands moved to his Henley, lifting it up to his chest where he broke our kiss again to pull it over his head, and I dropped my bra to the floor.
"Jesus," he hissed, cupping my breasts, and sliding his thumbs over my nipples. "Even better than I imagined."
I smiled, running a finger over his giant Dogs of Fire tattoo. "This is new."
"Not really. I got it when I patched in, a few years ago now."
"Right. Of course." I kissed the top of the flas. "I love it."
He smiled. "Thanks, baby."
"Can we get naked now?"
"That’s what we’re doing."
I huffed. "Are we? Because it’s taking a really long ti."
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