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  “Oh, could you just put it over there?” Shawna asked, pointing toward the closet doorway.

  He placed the box on the floor, and stood.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  She moved past him, and he watched her swaying ass as they made their way toward the moving truck.

  When they were there, one of the men handed her a large box that made her push out a breath. She didn’t complain though. Shawna simply turned and made her way back into the house. He took a box, and found her struggling upstairs with the box she’d taken.

  “What is in that?” he asked.

  “It says ‘Mom’s books.’ Sorry, let me move out of the way.” Her ass was pointed directly at his face, teasing him as she slid the box across the carpeted stairs, and moved so that her back was flat against the wall. “There. Enough room, I think.”

  He stepped up close, and placed the box he was holding onto the stairs, and leaned it resting against his leg. Nate was unable to turn away, to move, or do anything, so he pressed his body flat against hers.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  Glancing down, he saw her nipples were rock-hard as they pressed against her shirt.

  Don’t do it. Don’t do it.

  Running the tips of his fingers up the outside of her thighs, he stared at those plump lips, and his cock hardened.

  “This is not moving boxes, Nate.”

  “Right now, I want a little taste.” Before he or even Shawna could stop him, he slammed his lips down on hers, and took the kiss that he’d been craving since the last time. Sliding his tongue into her mouth, he sank his fingers into her hair, and pressed his entire body against hers.

  Her hands went to his arms, holding him in place.

  The sounds of their parents giggling forced him to pull back. When he did, he saw her eyes were closed.

  Slowly, they opened, and he licked his lips. “You taste as good as I remember.” He leaned down, and lifted up the box of books.

  Shawna scrambled to pick up his box before it dropped, and he took the large box toward his father’s room. He placed the box on the floor, and turned to watch as Shawna entered the room, minus the box.

  “What the hell was that?” she asked.

  “Last time I checked, that was a kiss.”

  “We can’t be kissing. We can’t be doing anything like that. We’re not even friends.”

  “Why can’t we be friends?”

  “You’re you, and I’m me.”

  “Congratulations, Shawna, I’m as confused as fuck at that statement.” He was angry. Not with her but with himself. There shouldn’t be any kissing, or any sexual thoughts. There should be nothing of the sort, and yet, she made him so crazy that all logical thought went out of the window.

  “I’m not going to do this.” She spun on her heel, and he cursed.

  He wasn’t going to stop her because he would kiss those soft lips that were designed to be wrapped around his cock. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He had made a vow that he was going to keep his hands to himself, and he wasn’t going to make this awkward.

  “Are you okay?” his father asked.

  “Yeah, I’m okay.” Forcing a smile to his lips, he glanced around the bedroom that only had three boxes. “There wasn’t much stuff.”

  “No, there wasn’t. From what I know, her ex wasn’t the most giving of men, so he didn’t waste too much money on material things.” Daniel leaned against the vanity table with a frown. “Do you know Dillon Prescott?”

  “Nope. I’ve heard of him, and I’ve probably seen him around school if he’s ever picked up Shawna.”

  “The man is an asshole. He wouldn’t have another child with Belle.”

  He and his father had always been able to talk about everything. What he couldn’t do right now was talk to his father about his obsession about their new house guest.

  “The guy sounds like an asshole.”

  “He is. I know it’s some kind of natural calling to be nasty to the new woman in my life. The whole stepparent thing, but I’m going to ask that you make it easy for Belle. Do you think you can do that for me?”

  Holy shit! Did that make Shawna like his stepsister? Ew, no, there was no way that was ever going to happen. The thought of it made him sick to his stomach.

  “Stepparent?” he asked.

  “Oh, it’s not like that. We don’t expect you to be a brother to Shawna or anything. You’re friends, and this is an entirely new thing. Also, you’re both adults pretty much, so we know that we can’t expect you to mingle as easily as if you were kids.”

  “Dad, it’s fine.”

  “You keep looking at Shawna, Nate. Do you want to tell me about that?” Daniel asked as Nate was making his way toward the door.

  He paused and glanced back at his father.

  “I also happened to see the incident on the stairs. We tell each other everything. There’s a level of trust there. Are you going to tell me or not?”

  Nate stared at his father not sure what to say. “You ever been with someone you knew you shouldn’t be with, and yet you just can’t stop?”

  “This have to do with Shawna?”

  He nodded. At least nodding wasn’t a verbal confirmation.

  “I trust you, Nate, I really do. Please, just don’t do anything crazy, okay? I want this to work with Belle. I like her.”

  “I’m not going to do anything, Dad, honestly. Don’t worry about us. We’ll do okay.”

  His father stares at him for another couple of minutes before finally giving him a nod of the head and disappearing out of the room. Nate released a breath, and happened to catch a glimpse of his reflection in one of his dad’s mirrors. Even to himself he looked torn up. Heading out of the room, he paused as he watched Shawna walk toward her room. She didn’t look toward him, and he wondered if that was why he had some kind of weird obsession going on.

  She didn’t show any sign of giving a shit about what he thought, nor was she trying to gain his attention. All of his life girls had flocked to him as if he was some kind of god. The truth was, he’d always found it a little stifling. Constantly being mauled by girls. Amanda was a prime example of that. She was constantly attacking him, running her hands up and down his arms, kissing him. It drove him crazy, and not in a good way.

  Seconds later Shawna came out of the bedroom and paused. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “You’ve got some kind of freaked-out look. I don’t know. This isn’t going to be weird between us, is it? Because if it is, just think that we’re not going to be together all that long.”

  “We’re not?”

  “No. College is on the horizon, our futures. I doubt you’re intending to stay here forever with your dad, and I know I’m not. We’ve both got futures that we want to start planning for.” She patted his arm and smiled. “Cheer up. This could be a good thing.”

  He forced himself to smile even though it was the last thing he wanted to do.

  “I’ll do my best.”

  She chuckled, and he watched her go with a spring in her step. They were going to have a conversation soon. He could wait for that talk.

  Heading downstairs, he couldn’t stop looking at Shawna. She was like some kind of siren calling to him. Shaking his head, he made sure to avoid her for the rest of the day.

  * * *

  Shawna sucked on the lime lollipop as she made a note in her text book. It had been a week since they moved into the Bridges’ house, and so far everything had gone well. There were no more strange interactions with Nate, which she liked, and she had also been able to avoid the topic at school. No one knew that she had moved into the most popular boy’s house, and she really hoped to get through the rest of the year without anyone finding out.

  “You do know that your father was on the phone, right?” Nate asked.

  She turned on her bed to find Nate leaning against her doorframe. “It went to voicemail. No biggie.” She stuck her lollipop back into her mouth, and
went back to studying, aware that he was still staring at her.

  “That is the fourth time he’s phoned this week, and you’ve still not answered the phone.”

  “So?”

  “Shawna, what is going on?”

  She frowned and spun around, sitting up. “What do you mean?”

  “Why won’t you talk to him?” he asked.

  “Why are you so curious?”

  “I’ve never known a guy call four times, and yet you still won’t give him the time of day.”

  “Ugh, he’s not some guy, Nate. He’s my dad, and I don’t have any intention of calling him.”

  “Ever?”

  “Possibly. He’s a total asshole, and right now, I don’t want to talk to him.” She stared at him, and she saw he had a lot more questions. “Go ahead, ask.”

  “What did he do to you?”

  She rolled her eyes, and pulled the lollipop from her mouth. “I was with Mom the day we walked into his office and he was screwing his secretary.” She shrugged. “Seeing my dad like that, it was creepy, and I can’t forgive him. He didn’t even try with us. He cheated on my mom, and he hurt her. I can’t accept that, and if that’s what guys are all about.” She shrugged. “If I ever talk to my dad again, I’ll do it when I’m ready, and not a moment before.”

  “He wants to talk to you. He wants to meet up. If you want I could go with you. Maybe it would help having me there as a buffer.”

  She laughed. “You’re being serious.”

  “Yeah, I am. I know what it’s like to have a parent out there, and wanting to be with them, and yet not being able to have that. Your father, he wants you, babe, and that’s a good thing.”

  She licked her lips. “Does this have something to do with your mom?”

  He tensed up.

  “Oh, I get it, you want to know everything about my father, but I can’t know anything about you?” She folded her legs and sucked on her lollipop.

  “It’s … complicated.”

  “I’ve got all day.”

  Their parents were out shopping, and Shawna only had studying to do all day. Biting her lip, she watched as Nate walked in and sat down beside her on the bed.

  “My mom is a bitch, and I’m not saying that because of her being a woman and shit. It’s because she is a bitch. A first-class one. The only reason she knows that she has a son is because I come with money.”

  “Wow, that like, really sucks.” She’d had no idea.

  “She has been flighty all my life. The only reason she ever comes around is for money, or when she pretends to want to be part of my life.”

  “Wow, what a bitch.” Shawna couldn’t believe it. She really didn’t know Nate all that well at all.

  “Yeah. Your father, he still wants to know you, to be part of your life, right?”

  She nodded.

  “I just think that you should consider that, you know? Not everyone can have that in their life.” He reached out, and stroked a finger over the back of her hand. It was a small touch, and yet her entire body sparked right up. She knew her feelings for Nate were confusing. They’d had sex, and now they were living together.

  “I’ll think about it the next time he calls. Right now, he wants me to consider moving in with him.”

  “Oh,” Nate said, pausing in his touch. “What do you want to do?”

  “I don’t want to move in with my father and his irritating new girlfriend. I’d never do that to my mom.”

  “Why does he want you to move in?” he asked.

  “Because of this.” She pointed between them, and then at the house. “He’s aware of your presence, obviously, and he’s pissed about that.” She shrugged. “Not a lot we can do about that.”

  “You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.”

  “I agree. Right now, I just want to get through high school.” She pushed her hair off her face and forced a smile to her lips. “What about you?”

  “Same. This is all new to me. I’ve always been a single guy, you know. No other siblings.”

  She chuckled. “We’re not siblings, Nate. We can never be, and you know, with everything that has happened, it can never happen.” Not that she didn’t think about it. Hell no. She woke up in the middle of the night thinking about the two of them together. Licking her lips, she glanced down at where their hands were touching.

  “We’re going to need to talk about that now.”

  “I know.”

  “Do you want to wait?” he asked.

  She looked back up at him. “There’s no point in not talking about it. We’re going to need to, right? Not that there’s much to talk about now.”

  “You don’t think there is?”

  Staring at him, she couldn’t think of a single thing to say. His messy blond hair seemed to have a mind of its own. Instead of looking scruffy, he looked hot, sexy hot. The shirt he wore clung to his muscular, hard body, and she would be lying if she said she wasn’t wet.

  Since having sex with Nate, it was all she could think about, and she never thought about sex, never, ever, not at all.

  “Well, maybe there is something to talk about,” she said, chuckling. “I’ve not told anyone, though. I, it’s, you know, it’s our private business, and it’s personal to us. No one needs to know what we did.”

  “I wouldn’t tell anyone. I’m not ashamed of it, though.”

  “Neither am I.”

  “It was really great. I really enjoyed it.”

  “Me too.” Her cheeks heated. “Oh, God, this is so embarrassing.”

  He held her arm. “Why?”

  “Because, you know me intimately, and you were my first, you know?” She smiled into his eyes.

  “That was a shock to me as well.”

  “It was?”

  Nate opened his mouth as if he was about to speak, and she was more than curious about what he had to say.

  “What? What is it?” she asked.

  “I’ve never been with a virgin before. I liked it. I really liked being with you, and inside you.”

  She took a deep breath as his hand moved to cup her cheek. “You did?”

  “Yeah, I really did. I really enjoyed it a lot.” He ran his thumb across her lip, and she couldn’t help that small gasp that escaped her. What was it about his touch that awakened her body, and made her want him so badly?

  “Fuck, baby, I want to kiss you right now,” he said.

  “We can’t do that.” She didn’t pull away though, and she knew she should. This was bad. Really, really bad, and not something she should be doing. Her mother trusted her to make the right and relevant decisions. This was not a good decision. This was a very bad one. One that was going to cause her nothing but pain. Nate was not the guy for her.

  The sound of the door opening downstairs pulled them both apart. Even though she hated it, she stood and pushed her shirt down over her jean-clad thighs.

  “Let’s go.”

  She rushed out of her room without waiting, and made her way downstairs to where Daniel and her mother were unloading the groceries. For a second she paused on the stairs, not really knowing what to do. This was something her mother and father had done many times, and she had watched the banter between them. The love that she thought had been indestructible. Of course, it would have been if her father had been happy and a demonic Sandy hadn’t ruined everything.

  “You okay?” Nate asked, coming up behind her.

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “You just stopped, and you’re watching our parents looking like someone took your candy.”

  She took a deep breath. “It’s nothing. It’s, you know, the future, the change. So many times they, erm, my parents, did that same thing. I guess this just makes it completely real, you know. They are never going to get back together.”

  “At least they’re happy.”

  “You know, you’re right. They are happy, and I’m so happy for them.” She had to keep moving forward or she was going to let the sadness consume her. The family she
had once known was completely gone, and it was never going to happen.

  Chapter Four

  “Did I hear right? Shawna Prescott is living with you?” Buster asked two weeks later. Nate sat in Biology looking over a diagram of the reproductive system as his friend tried to talk to him.

  “Who told you?”

  “Amanda. Apparently someone saw you and Shawna leaving the other day, or something. Anyway, the whole school is going crazy with this info, and I was like, no, my boy wouldn’t do that.”

  Nate had hoped to avoid this kind of conversation, and now it looked like he didn’t have much of a choice. “Our parents are dating. It’s nothing serious.”

  “Seriously? You have a girl underneath your roof permanently, and you don’t think that is a big deal?”

  “It’s not.”

  “Is this because it’s Shawna and not someone like Amanda?”

  Nate didn’t care about that, not really at all. Amanda wasn’t all that great, and she was way too clingy, and not someone he wanted to be with long-term. If he was being honest, he wished he hadn’t started screwing her just to make his life easier. She was just so easy, and he loved sex. Now when he thought about that decision, he felt stupid. This was not the life he wanted for himself, avoiding a girl just to have some peace.

  “Ah, I see. Well, you could use Shawna to practice on.”

  The recoil was natural. “I’m not going to use someone like that.”

  “Why not? How do you think some guys practice? Girls like Shawna would be only too happy to have a guy like us waiting for them. Believe me, and they’ll be lucky as well.”

  Just listening to Buster was making him feel sick. Shawna was so much more than a practice doll.

  “I can get my own practice in, and if I have any trouble on that front, I’ll watch porn.”

  Buster shrugged. “I do both. I’ll bang anything I want, and of course there are plenty of girls who want a piece of me, always are, and I’m more than happy to give them what they want.”

  The teacher called on them to be quiet, and right then Nate was more than happy with the peace and quiet. Hearing the shit coming from Buster’s mouth was just…disgusting.

  Where the fuck had his attitude changed?