Caught Stealing (Leighton U, #2)

by C.E. Ricci

But hey, what doesn’t kill you just gives you seriously fucked-up coping mechanisms and one massive self-destruct button.

None of it feels right because he’s not the person I want to be kissing.

I want him. This stick-up-his-ass, frustrating-as-hell guy who, quite frankly, wants nothing to do with me.

“Why are you doing this?” I whisper. “Because it’s all I can think about anymore.” His attention drifts from my eyes back to my lips. “You’re all I think about. And I can’t do anything to stop it.”

“Hold—” “Don’t you dare,” he whispers harshly while tightening his hold on my hip. “You’re not ending this now. I’m not fucking done with you.” Then he crashes his mouth back to mine, and I drown all over again.

God, he’s beautiful. Beautiful and finally fucking mine. “I want both,” he finally says slowly, fingers dancing down my bicep. “I want you to drive me to the brink of insanity only to stop and let me return the favor.”

I’m high on sunshine, tequila, and him; a combination sure to decimate the willpower of even the strongest of men.

“You have to stop looking at me like that.” My eyes follow the lines and planes of his face as I murmur, “I wish I knew how.”

Because he’s not meant for you.

Holden: Talk to me, Nix. Holden: Please.

I’m going to Hell for this. But fuck, the road to Hell has never tasted so sweet.

“Then what’s the score with us?” “You tell me, Nix,” I murmur, my attention darting between his eyes and lips. “Because from our conversation in that classroom, I’m under the impression we’re doing this your way. You’re mine, and I’m yours, and that’s the end of it.”

slab of meat in my chest

weirdest way to describe a heart tbh

As if all he wanted was a yes. As if all he wants is me.

One thing he told me that…I just don’t see as a possibility. And it’s a concern I whisper aloud, though I know he’s not awake to hear it. “I don’t know if he’ll forgive me for falling in love with you.”

“I still don’t think you fucked up all that bad,” Cam says in a whisper that’s a bit louder than he probably intended. “And I’m done,” Theo mumbles as he picks up the entire bowl of popcorn—or what’s left of it—and dumps it over Camden’s head before dropping the empty plastic on his head. “I did absolutely nothing to deserve this,” Cam chirps, the sound muffled by the plastic.

My brows shoot to my hairline. “Wait, you know he knows?” All he does is nod, and I wonder how neither of them let that little piece of information slip. Unless… “Does he know you know he knows?” Phoenix nods again, this time with a light laugh. “God, this feels a lot like that one episode of Friends.”

“I’m yours, Nix. Always. You have to know that. So choose you, baby. ‘Cause I’m choosing you too.”

“That person could be right around the corner, you know.” His head shakes, disbelief evident on his face. “At this point, he’s either fictional, straight, or isn’t alive.”

And I honestly don’t think I’d enjoy attending a college halfway across the country from the guy I love.”

“Out of all the lies I’ve told through this entire mess, telling you I didn’t love you was the biggest one of all. There’s nothing and no one I want more than you,” he murmurs, fingers scraping against the back of my head. “I love you, baby. And I’m so fucking sorry for making you think otherwise.”

“I love you, Nix,” I whisper between each kiss I plant on his lips. “I love you so fucking much.”

“I love you,” I whisper before brushing my nose along his. “I love you so fucking much.”

“You fuck me up, Nix,” he murmurs, his lips brushing mine with every word. I smile against his mouth. “I know, baby. You fuck me up, too.”