Page 28 of Fireworks

“God, you really are stupid. That was the single best kiss of my life. I hate you because of what you did after.”

I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as I blinked, trying to suppress them. Now wasn’t the time to lose control of my emotions. He didn’t deserve to see what his words did to me. Especially since it had been four years.

“I didn’t do anything.”

“The minute Asher walked in, you told him I was just being a dork. Do you even realize how much that hurt? I thought you cared about me, especially offering to help me out with a dare like that. You didn’t have to do that, but you did. I thought it, the kiss, that it meant something. That maybeImeant something to you. I was obviously wrong.”

Turning around, my eyes closed as I could feel the hot salty liquid stream down my cheek.

“Katie. I’m such a fucking idiot. I just didn’t want your brother asking questions. He would drop it and go back to playing. I didn’t know you heard me say that. Why didn’t you say something?”

Frozen where I was standing, I wanted to run out of his room and out of the house. Away from this pure embarrassment. It was stupid of me to not call him out when it happened. Instead, I harboured the anger for four years.

“It doesn’t matter anymore, Nate. It’s in the past.”

My voice cracked as I felt his hand on my arm pulling me to face him.

“What if I said it mattered? It matters to me.”

I hated I was crying in front of him, especially since it was over this, of all things. It was a moment in my past that I had spent so much time trying to shove deep down and remind myself that it was all in my head and nonsense.

The pad of his thumbs grabbed my face, wiping away the tears that I had no control over escaping my eyes. He looked at me; the warmth in his chestnut brown eyes was the same as I remembered so fondly from when I was just a kid. He pulled me in, hugging me tight in his arms. Maybe that kiss meant something to him.

*****

Nate

It was hard to breathe with her in my arms. I wanted to tell her the kiss meant something. I wanted to tell her I thought about it often even. More often than I should have. That every time I looked at her, I wondered if it had meant anything to her too. I released her from my grip and walked back over to my dresser to grab the keys.

“We should probably head back. Before everyone wonders where we are.”

Her feet slowly carried her across the room towards me. She didn’t stop until she was less than a foot away from my body. Tears still streaking her cheek. I could feel her breath on my skin, and she leaned in closer. Grabbing her shoulders and trying to gain control of the situation, I took a step back, bumping into the edge of my dresser. She had me pinned in the corner.

“We can’t do this Katie.”

Her voice over road mine with her own agenda. It came out breathy and sexy as hell.

“Why? It’s not like you’ve never kissed me before. Make it up to me. Kiss me and don’t be a jerk afterward.”

Taking a step to the side, I could smell her freshly washed hair and body wash. Peaches and strawberries would never smell as sweet as when the scent wafted off her body. Holding back what I wanted to do right now was the hardest thing I’d ever done in my life. I looked back into her emerald eyes, shining up at me with a thirst I had never seen before.

“You’re Asher’s little sister. What if it doesn’t work out?”

“And what if it does?”

My lips gravitated towards hers as I fought to pull myself back.

“Things are going to be too messy. We can’t.”

Exhibiting any level of self-control around her was impossible as my lips fell onto hers, defying what my words were telling us. Immediately, it sent a surge through my body, making my heart race and my head spin. My hands tangled themselves in her hair, holding her and keeping her from pulling away as her lips parted, inviting a passion I didn’t know I needed. Our tongues traced one another slowly.

The world around me was spinning as I felt her hands run themselves up my chest, resting themselves on my shoulders as she pulled herself closer. I had craved her lips on mine for the last four years. It was an undeniable want that nothing else could satisfy.

My body fought against me as I pulled my hips back to avoid her realizing the effect she had on me as our lips ended their exploration. Her eyes sparkled as her face fell back into my view, my voice shallow as I spoke.

“We shouldn’t have done that.”

Looking back at me, her voice was low.

“Why?”

I grabbed her face between my hands, cupping her jawline as I studied every inch of her expression at this moment.

“Because I’m going to want to do it again.”

Pushing hard onto her lips, I would hold on to this memory for the rest of my life.