Page 181 of Save You

“Ruby,” I manage.Freed from the shock, I pull her back to mewith both hands.Then I lean over her, shut all thoughts out of my head, and kiss the girl I love for the first time in two months.

I press a hand to the back of her neck and wrap the other around her waist to pull her close to me.Ruby sighs in my mouth.

Oh, wow.

I’ve missed this so much.

The way Ruby moves.Her beautiful lips.The quiet sounds she makes when our tongues touch.

I stroke the back of her neck, from her hairline down to her throat.Her skin is so warm and soft.I’d love to cover her whole body with kisses.Ruby gasps as if she’s just had the same idea.

The sound awakens me from my trance.Breathing hard, I pull away from her.

Although we’re closer than we’ve been for ages, we’re not ready for more.There’s still a boundary between us that neither of us can yet cross, and as Ruby buries her face in my neck and just holds me, I know that she’s thinking the same thing.

I stroke her back and hold her tight—seconds, minutes, hours.It’s as though, in this moment, she and I are all there are.Only the two of us in the whole world.

I don’t know how long we’ve been standing here, but when we finally let each other go, it feels like it’s been half a lifetime.

We look at each other and smile.Ruby smooths down her fringe and I straighten my jumper.It’s clear that neither of us knows what to do next.

I clear my throat.“I should…”

At the same moment, Ruby says, “How’s…” and we both start to laugh.

“You first,” I say.

Ruby smiles.“I just wanted to ask how Lydia’s doing.I didn’t see her yesterday evening.”

“She’s fine.She still feels sick from time to time, so she didn’t come to the gala.”

Ruby frowns with concern.“But everything else is OK, isn’t it?”

I nod.“Yeah, it’s normal, apparently.”

It’s good to know that I don’t have to watch my words with Ruby.She knows all our secrets; there’s nothing I couldn’t talk about with her.I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to show her how much that means to me.

Suddenly, Ruby takes my hand and pulls me to her bed.My stomach does a nervous somersault because for a moment I have no idea what this means, but then she drops cross-legged onto the bed and pats the space beside her.I feel a strange mixture of relief and disappointment as I sit down next to her.

“How are you feeling about Oxford?”she asks in the end.

The warmth inside me gives way to icy cold.I stare at Ruby in shock.

“OK, I guess that answers that,” she says, smiling understandingly at me.

“You know what I feel about Oxford.”

“That sounds like you’re in a relationship with the university.”

I raise an eyebrow.“Look who’s talking.Don’t think I haven’t spotted the love hearts you’ve drawn on that email you’ve printed out,” I say, pointing to the pinboard over her desk.

Ruby looks sheepish.Then she smiles.“Yeah, OK.Got me.But you didn’t answer my question.”

I think a moment.“I’m happy that you’re happy.You can be pleased for both of us,” I say, as diplomatically as possible.

Ruby rolls her eyes.Before I can respond, she’s grabbed one of her pillows and whacked me with it.For a moment, I’m just blinking in confusion, but then I turn to Ruby.“Lydia always does that too.And now I can’t defend myself against her, in case I damage anything.But you…” Fast as lightning, I snatch another pillow and throw it at Ruby.“It’s completely different with you.”

She reacts quicker than I’d have thought possible.She grabs the pillow I threw at her and pummels me with it twice.When she tries to repeat the trick a third time, I catch her wrist and hold it tight.