Tempting (Red Lips & White Lies, #1)

by Bella Matthews

“Time is precious. Make sure you spend it with the right people.”

The kind of girl squad most teenage girls—hell, most grown women—dream of. The kind that cheers the loudest for you, even if you’re not around to hear it. Who protects your name in rooms you’re not in.

“When you find the right person, you’ll know. Wait for them. Because doing this life with your mother . . . the balancing act of it all. It was fun with her by my side. She kept me grounded. Find a best friend, Nixon. They make living this life so much better. But don’t go searching. When the time is right, it’ll happen. Trust that and follow your gut. Instincts are there for a reason, son. Listen to them.”

Crying is not a sign of weakness. Since the minute you were born it’s been a sign of life.

If it’s worth doing—worth having— you need to earn it. Nothing is given to you.

I’m not like other girls. I know what I want for dinner. I’ve been thinking about that shit since lunch.

“Because you’re mine, Mac. I think you always have been. And I’ll always protect you and take care of you.”

You can be happy together, because no man or woman can make you happy. It’s not their job. You have to be happy with yourself to be happy with them. Like I said, if you can be happy together, you can work out the rest.

“I love you, Mackenzie Hayes. I’m not sure when it happened. I don’t know if it was last week or last month, or if it was the first time you walked into my house when we were kids. But it happened, and it’s real. Fuck. It’s the most real thing in my life. You. You’re it for me. You’re everything.

I’m an overthinker. I need to look at something from every possible angle. I need to study it before I can jump in. And even then, I don’t always jump. But with you . . .” I ghost my lips over his and dig my fingers into his hair. “With you, I want to jump. You’re going to have to be patient with me though. I’m still going to be waiting for the other shoe to drop. But loving you, Nix . . . loving you is worth the fear.”

Forgiving is easy. Forgetting is hard. Admitting you may have overreacted is fucking torture.