Page 100 of Should Our Stars Collide

Ash’s heart skips a beat. Maybe two. Hell, it does some weird gymnastics thing. “You are?”

Seeing how jittery Kieran is getting, they should’ve waited to have this conversation after they got home. But now that he’s finally opening up, Ash doesn’t want to do anything that would make him shut down.

“What you said yesterday, it…struck a chord. A big one.” The tension in Kieran’s voice reveals how hard it is for him to admit that. “You are a pompous, perverted ass, and half the time I want to smack you. But…” A breathless chuckle slips past his lips. “I’m starting to get a feeling that no one else will ever understand me like you do, down to the darkest parts of me. And, well, I’d have to be fucking insane to turn my back on all that.”

Cal’s words echo through Ash’s head, his whole body thrumming with excited energy.

Okay, calm down. Don’t get ahead of yourself. This is huge, but stay cool.

“Only half the time? I thought you always wanted to smack me.”A joke. Well done, Cleaver.

Kieran rolls his eyes. “Don’t get too cocky. I was just trying to be nice.”

“Don’t,” Ash blurts out. “You don’t have to try to be anything with me. I like that cranky, grumpy, secretly sweet personality of yours.”

Kieran lets out a shaky breath. “Just say you enjoy degradation.”

“Only because I know it’s your love language.”

“No, it’s not.”

“It is, too.”

“Think whatever you want, you weirdo.”

The rest of the drive home is a strange combination of tense, but comfortable. The tension doesn’t feel ominous, like a shoe about to drop, or an argument about to blow up. It feels like anticipation with a hint of hope.

At home, Ash lets Tequila out of the carrier. She rubs against his leg, gives Kieran a loathing look, and prances away, probably to hide inthe closet.

“It’s like living with your mortal enemy. Should I be sleeping with a knife?” Kieran asks.

“She’d probably find a way to use it against you.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

Ash chuckles. All jokes aside, there’s something he needs to discuss before he goes crazy from overthinking. “Have you thought about where you’d like to go from here?”

Kieran crosses his arms, defiantly jutting his chin out. “You’re not putting anything in my butt, that’s for sure.”

Ash grins, unable to keep himself back from stirring shit up. “How about somewhere else?”

Kieran’s not impressed. He ignores the question entirely.

“You said consent is important. I’m gonna hold you to that one.” He gives Ash a look that speaks volumes.‘I’m trying to trust you here. Don’t fuck it up because there won’t be a second chance.’“I’m starting to realize I might not know myself as well as I thought. So I don’t know what I might be okay with or not. You can…test the waters, and I’ll tell you how I feel about it.”

Jesus Christ, Kieran might as well have laid out a freaking buffet in front of him.

After clearing his throat three times, Ash manages to squeeze out a croaky, “Sounds good.”

“Stop it. You’re basically vibrating on your feet,” Kieran snaps at him. “You mentioned my…self-harming tendencies.” His face contorts like he tasted something bitter. “I’ll let you handle that,within reason.But don’t mess with my diet, and if you wake me up at a godforsaken hour to go running with you or something equally abominable, I’ll kick you in the nuts.”

“Your exercise routine has nothing to do with our dynamic. Or at least not in the way you think.”

Kieran staggers back, a hand over his heart. “Are you telling me I do itwillingly?”

“You perform exceptionally well under the reward system.”

“Reward system? What are you—” He inhales sharply. Ash’s shit-eating grin must’ve answered the question for him. “Seriously? Is all we do just bang?”