Page 29 of The Romance Rivalry

Fourteen just one bed

I stand at Aiden’s dorm room, waiting before I knock.

I’ve got to get myself in the right headspace. We have a Live tonight where all of our followers will be there watching, listening,

wanting to see what’s happening between us. Or maybe I’m just giving us too much credit. Maybe we’re not that interesting.

Maybe no one will show up. Maybe it will be a train wreck.

This is exactly why I didn’t want to do this Live. And now that Aiden and I have entered into the murky waters of fake-dating-that-feels-suspiciously-real,

I don’t have my bearings.

And yet, because everyone else seemed to think it was such a great idea, here I am.

I’m not sure if I’m angry that he hasn’t texted me in two days and didn’t respond when I was struggling and flailing during Parents Day. Or if I’m worried—worried that he hasn’t texted me in two days, worried that Aiden, who can’t seem to help but come to the rescue, wasn’t there.

I’m actually feeling both those things but am reluctant to admit to either.

In any case, I won’t know until I talk to him, so I knock. Aiden answers right away, as if waiting at the door for me to get

here. I narrow my gaze, shamelessly examining every inch of him, looking for clues as to how he’s feeling, what’s going on.

I don’t know what I’m looking for, but, god, he looks so good. His hair a little disheveled, his eyes red-rimmed and slightly

haunted, dark circles rest on the top of his cheeks. But still, my heart picks up its pace and my stomach rolls a tiny bit

as if in anticipation of the first drop of a roller coaster.

I’m here. He’s here.

“Hey,” he says, a small smile crossing his face. He reaches out and pulls me inside, closing the door and then gently crowding

me against it. He leans into me and presses his forehead to mine. Like he’s drawing strength or comfort from this connection.

I wonder if he realizes that every time he’s done this, I’m the one who ends up feeling like I can fly.

He pulls away slightly, but before I can say hello in return, his lips are on mine. He catches me just as I’m mid-gasp, and with my mouth parted, his tongue finds its way in. His kiss is needy, hungry, and I fist my hands into the back of his shirt, holding on, pulling him even closer to me, if that’s possible. I forget all the questions I had in my head. Whatever it is he’s going through, whatever is on his mind, I want to be there for him and give him this.

It feels so good to be this close to Aiden.

A deep groan rumbles through him. It reverberates all over my body. I lean my head to the side so his mouth can get better

purchase. I’m amazed at how well we just fit together. The feeling of accomplishment when an elusive puzzle piece is found

and snaps into place.

My hands move up to his head and my fingers explore the softness of his thick hair. I lean back against the door, letting

my hips push forward a bit as they meet his hardness and obvious interest. Something about the power I feel making him this

excited and turned-on emboldens me, and I press against him again.

“Irene,” he says. His tone teasing me in warning. “This is gonna get really messy pretty quick if you don’t stop that.”

I smile against his mouth, feeling his lips stretch as well.

Wow. Scenes like this, my favorite scenes in the books I read, really do happen.

And maybe more surprising... I don’t hate experiencing it in the flesh. In fact, I am loving this.

He pulls his face away, arm braced against the door, and in a surprising move, lays his head on my shoulder. The tenderness of the move steals my breath. I wrap my hand around the back of his head and tuck him in, holding him against me. I kiss him on the top of his hair and wrap my other arm around his back, waiting as his breathing evens out.

After a moment, he straightens up but won’t look me in the eyes.

When he finally does, the mask is back on and the moment is gone.

“Well, now that that’s out of the way,” he says, brushing it off, “come on in.”

Okay, Aiden, I won’t push you to talk , I think. Not yet.

I look around his dorm room.

It’s a single. Basically the same size as my double, but with half the furniture. That hardly seems fair, this much space

for one person. His desk houses a huge computer monitor with Post-it notes stuck all around it. It’s the only sign of anything

messy in the entire room. The place is unnaturally clean for a college dorm. I wonder if he’s organized it all for me, knowing

I was coming, or if he’s usually this tidy.

I scan the other side of the room. “Just one bed,” I say under my breath as I take in the extra-long twin against the far

wall.

He lets out a little laugh. “Yeah, it’s technically a double. But the guy who was supposed to be my roommate dropped out of school before the semester even started. I wouldn’t mind having a roommate, especially someone like Charles, but this gives me a lot of space and privacy, if I need it. But the seven of us in these four rooms usually just keep our doors open and pretty much all live in the common area, anyways.” He reaches back and grabs his neck, then lifts his hand and scratches the back of his head. He’s fidgeting. Is he nervous?

I nod, noticing that the door is actually closed right now.

“Hey, so, I’m sorry I didn’t text you back the last couple days. I’ve just had a lot on my mind.”

“No problem,” I say with a shrug. My voice betrays me, though, trying too hard to be light and cheery. It very clearly was

a problem.

“Look, to be honest, my head was kind of fucked up during Parents Day. I don’t know, I guess I actually thought maybe they’d

show up.”

It takes me a second, but then I realize he’s talking about his parents. “Oh, I didn’t realize that you’d invited them.”

“Yeah, it was kind of a last-minute thing. I told my brother about it. I asked him to tell them. And then I just waited, I

guess. I knew they would likely not show up. I didn’t know it would be as disappointing as it was when they didn’t, though.”

He goes and sits down on his bed, puts his elbows on his knees, and locks his hands, looking down at them.

I’d never seen the confident and ever-capable Aiden Jeon look this defeated. And it hurts to witness it. Of all the times I’ve worried about disappointing my parents, I don’t think there was ever once I didn’t know they would love me anyways. And maybe Aiden’s parents do love him in their own way. It’s just a very shitty way of showing it, if you ask me.

I walk over and stand between his legs, forcing him to straighten and look up at me from his seated position.

I wrap my arms around his shoulders and draw him to me, holding him, willing him not to pull away. He doesn’t. I’m sorry. I’m sorry they didn’t show up. I’m sorry that your parents are being assholes. That they’re not supporting you.

You deserve better than this. I think all the words in my head but don’t say them aloud. I don’t know how he’d feel about hearing them.

He looks up at me. His eyes are soft... but questioning. I wonder what he sees when he looks at me. What is it that he’s

wondering about at this exact moment? He shakes his head almost imperceptibly, and when his gaze returns, the sparkle is back,

the smile slowly spreading until his dimples are on full display. Every butterfly in my stomach decides now is the time to

flutter.

He pulls me a little, tugging at me until we both fall back, me on top of him.

A loud squeak escapes my mouth at the surprise tumble. Attractive.

“Oh my god, are you okay?” I ask. What if I crack one of his ribs or something?

But he just laughs and spins us both until we’ve traded positions, him on top of me now. It feels like the cocoon of a weighted blanket, a human blanket, and I never want to pull it off me.

He puts weight on his elbows on either side of my head, looking down into my eyes. My body thrums with the need and want for

him to kiss me again, but I also want more. I want to explore him and I want to... be explored.

“Please,” I say, as an invitation. What I’m asking for, I’m not sure. Maybe I’m asking for everything. I want everything with

Aiden.

He presses his entire body down onto mine and kisses me. I’m suddenly very aware of the wetness between my legs and try to

squeeze them closed, embarrassed he might notice, too. But he pushes his knee a little bit in between them, our legs alternating

between each other. He deepens the kiss, and this time he grinds his lower half into mine. His hardness meeting my wetness,

mere pieces of fabric the only thing separating us. Can he feel it through my jeans, I wonder.

One of his hands makes its way to my waist, where the side of my shirt has lifted to expose the skin at my stomach. Without

taking his eyes off mine, Aiden drags his hand across, and it disappears up under my shirt. He pushes his thumb under the

band of my bra, and suddenly the sensation from my nipple bolts through me. I gasp. Or maybe it was a scream. I’m not sure

at this point. My heart pounds in my ears, and between that and the moans coming from my mouth, I can’t hear anything else.

His lips kiss my mouth relentlessly as his hand explores my breast and his denim-clad lower body pushes and scrapes against mine.

I think in this moment I very much understand the superiority of the “just one bed” trope. I don’t want any more space. In

fact, I’d be okay with less space, and less clothing, between us.

I wonder how Aiden will handle the question of consent. Will he ask me with words? Will he read my body movements? Am I being

clear enough with my willingness, or does he sense hesitation? Will that stop him? Will he...

“Do I even want to know what’s going through your head right now?” His voice brings me back from the freak-out happening in

my thoughts.

“I’m sorry. I was just... thinking. Um, but still very much enjoying all of this, obviously. I mean, my body is fully capable

of responding even though my head is a little preoccupied.”

He starts shaking as the laughter rolls through him. “Not holding your interest, am I?” he asks through his last chuckles.

“Oh my god, you totally are. It’s just, well, this is kinda the first time I’ve ever gotten this far with anyone.”

Aiden pulls back a tiny bit, just enough so he can look into my eyes and I can look into his. It’s almost physically painful

how warm his gaze makes me feel. His voice is soft and gentle and kind. “Do you want me to stop?”

“Oh no, not at all. I just wanted to make sure you know that I’m, um, very much consenting to it,” I say.

He nods his head. “Thank you for making it clear. I appreciate that.”

“You know me, all roads lead back to romance novels. And I like books where consent is handled in an honest and direct way.”

He smiles and kisses the tip of my nose. “You’re amazing, you know that? How did I get so fucking lucky?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m the lucky one,” I say.

Aiden continues to kiss me, on my eyes, my cheeks, my ears. I turn my head to give him access to kiss my neck. I catch a glimpse

of myself in the mirror on his closet door. My hair is all over the place. The hem of my shirt is partially tucked into my

bra. The button of my jeans is open and, oh god, there’s a wet spot. I’m a mess.

I cover my eyes with one of my hands and groan.

“Everything okay?” he asks.

“Uh, I just saw myself in the mirror and I look deranged,” I say.

He pulls my hand away. “You’re beautiful,” he says. He brings my hand to his mouth and kisses it.

His mouth meets mine again and I hungrily greet his tongue as it enters. I feel like I could do this, right here, with Aiden

forever.

But a blaring sound from his desk shocks me out of my lust-filled haze.

“Shit. It’s my alarm. We have our Live.”

“Oh my god! Already? I can’t do a Live looking like this! I very clearly look almost-sexed-up. Everyone will know.” I’m in

full panic mode. I pull all my body parts away from his body parts and sit up, patting down both sides of my hair, trying

to put myself back together. I go to button up my jeans and look down. “What do I do about this ?” I ask, pointing to the wet spot.

Aiden tucks his lips between his teeth, trying to hold back a laugh.

“You did this!” I accuse him.

“I’m sorry,” he says, clearly not sorry. “But no one can see that. We’ll be sitting at the desk. They’ll only see shoulders

up.” His eyes scan me and as they home in on my neck, they grow huge as saucers.

I jump up and stand in front of his closet mirror where an unmistakable, angry red spot decorates my neck. “Oh god, I have

a hickey!”

“Here, wear this,” he says, throwing me a hoodie from the back of his desk chair. I pull it over my head, tug at both the

strings, cocooning my head until only my face shows, and bunch the rest of the hood’s fabric as best I can around my neck

area as a secondary defense.

“Okay, c’mon, c’mon, we’ve gotta log on,” he says, rushing me.

“This is such a bad idea. I can’t believe you’re making me do this. Oh god, I look a wreck. Everyone’s gonna...”

The red light comes on.

“Hello, everyone! And welcome to our very first combined Live event. I’m Irene from irene.loves.love.books and this is Aiden

from aidentheguyreadsromance,” I say energetically to the screen, practiced smile perfectly in place, voice modulated to sound

comfortable and approachable.

I sense Aiden’s eyes on me, so I turn a few degrees with a smile, give him a piece of mind with my eyes, and kick him under

the desk for good measure, encouraging him to get it together.

He laughs at me. The nerve. He laughs like we’re not about to embark on an hour-long Live where anything can happen.

The questions and comments start pouring in so quickly I can barely read them. My eyes scan the words.

What are you reading?

What do you think of the new dragon book?

What do you recommend for a new historical romance reader?

I knew I could count on my followers to bring some good questions.

It’s so weird you two are doing a Live together.

Are you guys dating?

Do you live together?

You look like you just got out of bed.

Those must be Aiden’s followers.

I start answering some of the easier questions, focusing on books and keeping the conversation flowing. To Aiden’s credit, he also jumps in with opinions and recommendations. Unsurprisingly, we disagree on most everything, and Aiden laughs like it’s the funniest thing ever. I come across like an exasperated kindergarten teacher.

“Okay, so to answer the most-asked question tonight...” Aiden says.

I immediately straighten my back and clench my jaw. What is he up to?

“What are we doing here, together, on this Live? Well, Irene and I attend the same university, if you can believe it. We didn’t

even know we’d both end up here. And not only that, but we’re in the same class, and to make it even juicier, we’re now dating,”

he says with an exaggerated wink to the camera, “to spice up our freshman year. Thoughts?”

My nostrils could fit quarters the way they’ve expanded with my rage.

“Now, now, let’s not just jump right in with all our personal business, Aiden.” I say his name through gritted teeth. I look

back into the camera, putting on my most earnest expression. “It’s all very new.”

“New, yes, but when it’s inevitable like we are, it gets serious quick,” he says again, with another over-the-top wink.

The comments are flying by so quickly I can’t read them all.

I knew it!

Awww, you two are cute!

Is this for real or are you guys fake dating (which no shade... it’s my favorite trope)

Get it, Aiden. Yeah

Technically, I knew what we were agreeing to and why. But I wasn’t quite prepared for the frenzied reaction online.

It’s at this point I know I have to come clean so as not to be misunderstood. I don’t want people assuming things about me

and Aiden, despite the fact that we were making out on his bed just a little while ago and I’m trying desperately to hide

the hickey he’s left me with.

“Well, let me explain. Aiden and I are engaged in a little friendly competition. A dating challenge, if you will. We’ve each

selected a list of tropes that we will use to guide us on our dating journey. And the first one of us to fall in love wins.

Isn’t that fun?” Even I can feel my facade slipping. My expression is much more panicked than fun. So not fun.

“And—surprise, surprise—in the midst of trying to beat one another to love, we ended up falling for each other,” Aiden says.

“Tell me a romance novel better than this.” He rests his chin on his hand propped up by his elbow and looks at me like a lovestruck

kid. He even lets out an exaggerated sigh.

The comments go wild.

I narrow my eyes at him. What are you up to? I say to him without words.

Just having some fun , he says back via twinkle in his eye.

You’re so dead , I threaten with a flare of my nostrils.

“Well, look at that, time’s up and we’ve got to get going,” I say to the camera.

“Expect more joint Lives from the two of us to talk about all things romance,” Aiden says. Not something we agreed to, but

I’d be willing to discuss as long as we set some boundaries.

“Bye,” I say with the last amount of energy I have left.

“Later,” Aiden says, reaching over and shutting off the Live.

I lean back in my chair and collapse, all the nervous energy leaving my body.

“Well, I guess that went better than I expected. Seriously, though, over the top, much?” I am ready to give Aiden a whooping

for his exaggerated winks and oversharing, but he grabs my face in his hands and kisses me, hard.

“Bet you’re gonna get more views than you have on any of your posts in the past six months,” he says. “You’re welcome.” He

stands up from his seat, raises his arms into the air in a stretch, and then reaches for the hem of his shirt, pulling it

off over his head. Aiden Jeon is standing shirtless in front of me. The smooth planes of his chest and abs are right in my

line of sight.

He offers me his hand and I stare at it, unsure what I’m supposed to do. He patiently waits until I figure it out.

Oh, we’re gonna continue what we started earlier. Yay!

I lay my hand in his as he pulls me up to standing. He then grabs the hem of the sweatshirt along with my T-shirt and pulls it off over my head. Now I’m facing him with just my bra on.

“I’m done talking about the Live, Irene.” He takes my hand back in his and directs me to his bed.

“Fine... for now,” I agree.

“Let’s talk about consent some more instead,” he says, pushing me down onto my back and crawling his way over me.

I nod.

“Is it okay if I kiss you here?” he asks, hovering over my stomach, waiting for my response.

“Yes,” I say.

“How about here?” he asks just below my bra.

“Yes,” I answer, this time breathier.

He pulls the fabric of my bra to the side.

I gasp in anticipation.

“Irene, would you be okay if I kissed you here?” His breath breezes over my nipple. I’m struggling to find words. He’s so

close. I want it.

“Irene?”

I look down at his face, waiting for my answer.

“Yes,” I say as his lips kiss my breast.

He scoots up and settles his entire body over mine.

It was all a game up until now. But his expression is no longer playful. It’s serious and gentle and asking permission as

he looks down into my eyes.

And for once, I don’t worry about anything else except for what I want.

And before he even opens his mouth to ask, I give my consent. “Yes, Aiden, yes.”