Page 71 of Save You

That’s what Ruby’s like.She finds solutions to the hardest tasks.She finds meaning where there isn’t any.And now she’s finding something in me that moves her to fling her arms around me.

“I don’t,” she whispers.“Not anymore.”

The next moment, she stands on tiptoe.She looks me in the eyes for a heartbeat.And then she kisses me.

I give a muffled exclamation of surprise.For a moment, I don’t even know what’s going on, and I grab hold of the desk with one hand as my fingers tighten their clutch on her back of their own accord.

Ruby comes closer still until there’s no space left between us.

This wasn’t my goal when I came here.But now she’s kissing me and her hands are on my body and she’s so close that I’m losing my mind…

“James?”Ruby leans back a little and looks uncertainly at me.It’s only now that I realize I’d been too overwhelmed by the situation to kiss her back.

“I…”

Suddenly, Ruby’s eyes widen and she puts a little distance between us.She swallows hard and shakes her head.“I’m sorry.I thought…I shouldn’t have…”

“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.