Kona felt like a stalker. A creepy, stupid, awkward stalker. It was not something he’d ever been. Sitting on the back of a park bench, elbows on his knees and hood over his eyes, Kona caught the attention of the people around him. 

A cross country meet wasn’t usually where Kona would be on a Saturday morning, and the coaches and scattering of parents around him seemed to know it. He caught several sidelong glances, one or two head nods, and he was glad that was all the notice the small crowd gave him.

Still, he felt stupid waiting near the finish line for Keira to place. She wasn’t expecting him, hadn’t, in fact, even answered the calls he’d made the night before. After their tangle in Nathan’s hallway, things got awkward. He’d driven Keira home, and they sat in the parking lot of her building listening to the sound of their matching breaths. The car had filled with her scent, that sweet drugging taste of flower and skin, but Kona didn’t touch her. He’d wanted her to lead.

“What happens next?” she’d asked him, and he’d been left stupid by her question.

He knew that being around her made things easier, left him calmer. But faced with that question, and the way they’d gone after each other, Kona was at a loss for the next move. That never happened to him.

“Let me take you out,” he’d told her, the thought coming to him out of nowhere. “This weekend. Tomorrow night. No game tomorrow.”

What was left unmentioned then was the way she’d touched him: the slap to his face, what it did to him, how he’d wanted to devour her. He’d let it fill the space in his car, unsure if one glance, one sarcastic comment, would have them trying to claw at each other again. So he waited for her reply, trying to ignore the fact that he held his breath until that answer came.

“Okay.” It was all she said. It was all she seemed able to say, and when she finally looked at him, a quick glance to her left that was shy, unrehearsed, Kona only nodded, held himself back.

He hadn’t even kissed her goodnight.

But he hated how he’d left things. He hated not knowing if she only agreed to a date out of curiosity. He hated that their first real kiss had been full of anger and resentment. He wanted to touch her, to taste her, to feel her, without any of it being a visceral reaction.

He’d spent the rest of the night in his room thinking about Keira’s mouth and skin and just how much he wanted to feel her, to have her with him always.

It completely messed with his head.

He didn’t know what was happening to him, what Keira was turning him into. He didn’t sleep the night before and found himself in the shower thinking of her, then in his Camaro driving toward her dorm that morning. The light outside her building had been faint, the day still dewy and dark, but Kona couldn’t stop himself from leaving his car, from climbing the stairs toward her dorm, from tapping on her door before seven that morning.

When Leann answered, hair pulled tight in a bun and wearing her leotards and dance shoes like she was about to head out, Kona at least had the decency to look apologetic. But the girl only squinted at him, the side of her mouth pinched in a suspicious frown.

“She’s not here,” she’d told him, looking like she was about to slam the door in his face.

“It’s not even seven! Where is she?” Kona tried not to wedge his foot between the door and its frame as Leann started to close it. He knew his voice sounded pathetic, that his words came out too loud.

“Why do you wanna know?” Leann was protecting her cousin. Kona had known that, but that hadn’t stopped him from moving his shoulders in a firm set. When he only inched up his eyebrow at her, Leann’s attitude deflated. “You like her?”

“Yeah.”

“You just want to have fun with her, Kona? Because she doesn’t need that shit.”

He rubbed his face, moved his knuckles into his eyes. “I like her, Leann. I like her a lot, and if I just wanted to fuck her, I would have already.” He thought Leann would appreciate his honesty. “She’s got me spinning.” He looked down, kicked the tip of his sneaker against the doorframe. “No one does that to me.”

Finally, Leann exhaled, released what was left of her attitude. “She had a meet this morning at Lafitte Park. You can catch her at the finish line.”

Kona gave her a smile, grateful that at least Leann was being honest. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

“Kona?” Leann called, stopping him before he could jog down the hallway. He expected a threat, one that would wipe the stupid grin off his face. But Leanna walked into the hall, and for once, her face wasn’t wrinkled with a frown, and she didn’t glare at Kona like he was an asshole. Her eyes were soft, and there was a plea in her expression, one that had Kona releasing his defenses. “Keira hasn’t had much happy. Try to give her a little bit, okay?”

So that’s what Kona was doing. Sitting on that park bench, watching the trail to his left, wondering what about Keira Riley had him waiting, had him wanting to make her happy.

“You got money on this shit?”

Kona closed his eyes, dipped his face in his hands when Ricky slid next to him. “What’s up, man?”

“You tell me, Kona.” Around them a small crowd was forming near the still taped-off finish line. Ricky’s legs were long, longer than Kona’s, and he stretched them on the bench, his shoulders relaxed as he dug out a bag of sunflower seeds from his jacket. “You’ve been avoiding me.” Kona heard the crunch of the seeds in Ricky’s mouth and tried not to look at him. A runner started to approach, leaner and shorter than Keira, but he still watched, looking behind her for Keira.

“I’ve had shit to do. Been busy.”

To his right, Ricky spat out three empty shells and they landed on the trail in front of them. He exhaled and slipped another handful of seeds in his mouth. “After everything I’ve done for you, man, and you can’t give me a half hour?”

“What do you want?” He finally looked at Ricky, feeling the quick slap of anger tunneling into his chest. Kona didn’t want Ricky here. He didn’t want that asshole seeing Keira. He didn’t want him asking questions or making Keira ask any.

Ricky waited a minute before he answered, cheeks lifting so that his bottom eyelids curled up. “Shipment is coming in. It’s a month away, but I need bodies.”

“I told you I was out.”

The smile on Ricky’s face wasn’t good-natured; it wasn’t friendly, and Kona’s gaze lowered to the sunflower seed cracking between his teeth. “Kona, you can’t just walk away.” The crowd started to clap, but Kona kept his eyes on Ricky, on that not-a-smile grin and the slip of his black eyes behind Kona. “No one just walks away.” Ricky stood, moved his chin toward the trail, and Kona followed him, his gut twisting hard when he saw Keira just feet behind the second-place runner. Her face was flushed, and her sweaty hair was matted to her forehead . That tight track uniform exaggerated the curve of her hips and the generous round of her breasts. She looked gorgeous. She focused hard, eyes narrowed as she gunned for the finish line.

“I noticed you took off last night.” Kona didn’t care that Ricky was still talking. He didn’t care that he’d followed him, sought him out. His attention was on Keira and her blue track shorts, the way her skin colored, the closer she got to the end of the trail. “She’s hot,” Ricky said, and Kona whipped his head around, blocked the guy from Keira’s view.

“You need to not look at her.”

“Calm down. I’m not gonna fuck with your girl.” Hands on his jeans, Ricky dusted away the seeds from his fingers. His gray jacket was thin, but lined with padding. He shoved his packet of seeds in his pocket and Kona caught the glint of black metal in his waistband. “But Kona, shit happens when I don’t get my way.” Ricky watched Keira run past them. She cleared the finish, stopping a good twenty feet behind it with her coach jogging toward her, handing her a bottle of water and her sweats. “And I always get my way.”

Keira was leaning on her knees to catch her breath. Kona didn’t want Ricky there. He didn’t want the threat of what Kona did for him to touch her. It took control, mammoth control, but Kona kept his hands in his pockets and didn’t move them around Ricky’s throat. “Stay the fuck away from her.”

“I will,” he said, finally looking away from Keira. “You just make sure you pick up your phone.”

Kona followed Ricky until he passed the runners and their families, and he tried not to frown too hard when the man stared at Keira again, when his eyes raked up her long legs. Kona approached her, trying to cool his temper, trying to push back the thought that Ricky knew who he’d been waiting for.

Keira smiled when he approached, but he could tell she felt awkward, nervous.

“You came? I didn’t tell you about the meet.”

He took the towel from her hand and wiped her face dry. “I wanted to see you. Couldn’t sleep last night.” Kona smiled, loving how red her face was, how cool her skin felt. “You place?”

“Third.” The small smile that had been working on her face disappeared, and she looked behind her at the two girls who’d finished ahead of her.

“That a bad thing?”

“It’s not first.”

He appreciated her irritation. They were both athletes. They both liked to win, third place was last place, and he got why she was disappointed. Keira walked past him, headed away from where the runners and their coaches were standing. He followed after her. “Don’t they do ribbons or medals or something?”

She nodded, pouring the remainder of her water over her face. “Gotta keep moving so I don’t cramp. Walk with me.”

“Hey,” he said, stopping her with a tug of her wrist.

“What?” Keira rubbed the towel across her wet skin and stepped back when Kona stood in front of her.

This was new for him, chasing after a girl, trying to get her attention, but Kona didn’t mind that Keira was making him work. He didn’t mind that she let her competitiveness distract her. He wasn’t the center of her attention, and, oddly, that didn’t bother him.

“You hungry?”

“Starving.”

“Good. We’ll catch a bite when this is all over.” He waved to the runners and the coaches nodding their girls over. Kona walked with Keira back toward the other runners. He took her hand, ignored her expression when her eyes lingered too long at their fingers locked together. “Don’t have a heart attack or anything.”

Kona loved the sound of her laugh, how it made a quick snap of sensation work in his stomach. He enjoyed that feeling, let it fill him as he led her toward her coach, but he moved his gaze around them, searching for the threat he didn’t want touching Keira.

He hadn’t stopped touching her. Not once, all night. At the restaurant Kona kept his calf right against hers as they sat at the crowded bar eating. On the levee, watching the street performers flip and dance around the French Quarter, he kept his hand flat against her back. As they walked back to his Camaro, he held her hand.

Keira liked the attention, but as they drove down Canal, his hand resting on her knee, she wasn’t sure what that attention meant exactly.

It hadn’t been a perfect date—the constant calls he ignored throughout dinner and as they walked the Quarter had been an annoyance, but Kona smiled at her a lot, held her close to him. He wasn’t perfect, but that’s what she liked about him.

“You wanna go to my place? Grab a beer?”

The streetlight above them was red and in its reflection Kona’s dark eyes looked shadowed. Verve Pipe’s “The Freshman” funneled out of the speakers as he stared at her, eyes low-lidded and a clear question moving up his eyebrows. She opened her mouth to answer, something biting working its way up her throat, but the light changed, and the asshole behind them laid on his horn.

“I guess that’s a no,” he said, gaze on her as he shifted gears.

They drove down Canal, passing by hotels, restaurant and tourist shops, and Keira had to take a moment, inhale the warm, musky scent of his cologne and the soft leather of the seats before she was able to answer.

“I’m not really interested in being around your friends, Kona.” She’d had enough of the football team at Nathan’s party, and from what she’d seen of the team house she knew that Kona’s “home” wouldn’t exactly be quiet or even remotely sane. She wanted to be with him, not his fans. His hand left her knee, and she felt the annoyance vibrating from his body. It was in the way he straightened his neck, how he leaned away from her. But before she’d let him get angry, Keira grabbed his hand and pulled it back to her knee, and he watched her, saw how she laid her fingers on top of his. The tension lessened, and a lazy smile pulled at his mouth. “I’m also not really eager to go where so many have been before.”

It was a sting, but one Kona took in stride.

“Fair enough.” 

One turn and then another and the CPU campus came into view. Keira loved the entrance to their small university. The huge oaks and magnolia trees that lined the street, the slow-moving street car that slid down the median, and the massive buildings that looked like something out of the Scottish Highlands and not the center of a huge city, always made Keira wistful, wanting to walk those cobbled sidewalks at sunset just to soak it all in. Kona pulled into her building, the parking lot relatively empty of cars; the green light of the clock told her it was only eleven. Leann wouldn’t be in their room. Saturday nights were for Michael, and Keira knew she probably wouldn’t see her cousin until the next afternoon.

Kona killed the engine but left the battery running, and the music changed, pumped Jodeci’s “Feenin’” into the cab. Keira blushed and stared out her window as the lyrics danced between them. Baby-making music always made her smile.

She could feel Kona watching her. His body was so large, and as his elbow rested on the console between them, that massive presence was palpable, invading her space. There was sensory overload working in that car—the heat of Kona’s body pumping toward her, the smell of his skin, the slow, sensual beat of the bassline in the song—she felt it all like a vibration to her senses, and without saying a word, without even touching her, Kona Hale had Keira crossing her legs, hoping that sweet throb in her center would ease.

“Wildcat?” he said, voice tickling right against her neck.

She turned her head, let it rest against the seat, and Kona was there, just there, with his lips close enough to touch. All she had to do was lift her chin, take what he was offering.

“Last night, at Nathan’s?” She nodded, letting a slow blink bring back those intense minutes in the hallway. “That…that kind of shit usually doesn’t do it for me. Know what I’m sayin’?”

She knew what he meant. There had been anger and resentment and an overabundance of reaction. She couldn’t explain what that was, what had her lashing out and liking it, but Keira couldn’t deny what it had done to her body.

“That was a first for me, too.”

Kona’s head dipped, just once, and the long stare he gave her heightened Keira’s already sensitive nerves. He moved in closer, one finger brushing across her forehead, and his gaze followed the movement as though he loved the way her hair fell against her skin, how it felt between his knuckles.

“I want to try something.” Those long fingers smoothed down her face until Kona held her cheek in his hand. “I want to see if that was some fluke.”

“You want me to slap you again?” His smile relaxed her, had her shifting her shoulders deeper onto the seat.

“No. I wanna try soft with you. I wanna try sweet, to see if it’s the same, if it does the same thing to me.”

She couldn’t help herself. “What did it do to you, Kona?”

Keira loved the way his eyes shifted up, how a deep, hypnotizing groan vibrated in his throat as though just the thought of his body’s reaction to her had him aching. He moved in, a fraction of his mouth nearly touching hers. “It made me want to go slow.” He kissed her then, just a peck that lingered before he pulled away. “And fast.” Another kiss, this one longer than the last. “It made me think I could only breathe if I was inside you.” 

And then, Keira’s own throat vibrated with a groan, a slow working sound that lifted up, caught, as Kona’s tongue, warm and deliciously wet, slid against hers. There was so much power, so much tenderness in every touch he gave her, a shuddering throb of sensation, of heat that made Keira lightheaded. He was demanding, and for once, Keira didn’t let the fear of being controlled scare her. For once, she just gave in and let Kona guide her, work in her something real and raw.  

She felt Kona’s breath rising, hot and heavy against her cheek, and loved that her fingers on his neck, pulling him deeper, had him moving faster—still slow, still calm, but desperate enough that his breathing became frantic, that his hands on her face, in her hair, shook.

She wanted this. Him. Her. Their touch, the magic in every brush of his fingers, the glide of his tongue, with her always. It was needy—desperate—and she loved the white-hot craving of him, of how her body reacted to him, how her heart hammered hard like an earthquake.

They kissed and touched—his mouth on her neck, sucking, nibbling; her fingers in his hair; her teeth biting his ear—and before Keira even realized what was happening, the windows fogged over, advertising to anyone watching what was happening in that Camaro. And then, a loud bang on the hood, and Keira opened her eyes and Kona’s happy moan turned into a grunt of frustration at whatever jackass it was that had interrupted them, laughter ringing in their hasty retreat.

Kona sat back, sweat dotting his forehead, and Keira blinked, shot up in the seat and grabbed the door handle.

“Wait.” Kona leaned across the seat covering her hand to stop her from leaving. “Where are you going?”

His frown was almost funny, but the rounding of his eyes told Keira that her leaving that car would undo him. She twisted her wrist so that she could hold his fingers and then brushed that massive hand aside. “I’m going to my room, Kona.” She got out of the car, and he sat staring at her, frown deeper, forehead wrinkled with tension. Keira bent down once she was out of the car, leaning forward to smile at him. “You coming or not?”

Kona felt like a punk. And he was, or at least he was acting like one, but Keira did something to him. She made him smile, made him laugh; she had him wanting to take her on dates. And he couldn’t stop touching her. That skin, that taste, the soft little sounds she made when he kissed her—it undid him, had him forgetting that he was just testing the waters, seeing where this thing with Keira would lead him.

Even the curve of her neck as she stood in front of the door to unlock it had Kona’s chest feeling tight. Kona couldn’t hold himself back. Keira smelled like heaven, all flowery and delicious, and her body was a miracle, fine, strong lines, muscle and soft curves, and he brushed her hair away to get to that body. Mouth on the smooth planes of neck, lips dragging against each bump, Kona felt her tremble against him.

“In…inside,” she managed, and then the door was open and they were alone.

She kept her back to him, movements slow, silent, as she threw her purse and keys onto the bed.  She wore dark jeans and a red, fitted shirt with a low back. Kona hadn't been able to stop watching the small expanse of skin that peeked out of that shirt all night. He’d been dying to kiss her neck, her back, since she walked out ahead of him as they left her dorm earlier. Now it called to him, with her standing next to the bed, shoulders stiff, and the appealing silhouette of her hourglass shape just feet from him. He couldn’t stop himself from coming behind her, from wrapping his arms around her waist so he was close enough to taste the scent of her on his tongue.

 “I love this,” he said, moving her hair again to get to her neck. He pushed down her shirt and she didn’t object. “And this. Your back is sexy, Wildcat.” Keira moved her neck, giving him easy access to all that glorious skin, and he felt her tremble again, arms shaking, hand lifting to his hair as he kissed between her shoulder blades.              

She made a noise that sounded like a song to Kona: low, sensual groans as his hands moved up her ribs, as his kisses and licks against her back and neck deepened. Her skin became a sheet of goose pimples that Kona tried to smooth down with his tongue, and Keira pressed against him, groans elevating into sounds that were higher, sounds that told Kona she liked how he touched her. And when he couldn’t control his hands, when they came up to cup her breasts, those sounds Keira made were like a symphony—glorious, intoxicating music that made Kona brush his thumbs against her nipples, made him pinch down on them until she was gasping, until she moved her ass against his hard dick.

“Kona…God…” She turned, arms sliding around his neck, and Keira kissed him, frantic, eager, tongue immediately separating his lips, then working against his. “Make me buzz,” she said, between kisses, “make my whole body buzz.”

And Kona realized, in that moment, with Keira’s sweet body and provocative scent making him high, making him so drunk on her, that he would do anything she asked. He’d make her skin sing, just to have her touch him the way she was then, just to hear the happy moan shooting out of her mouth like a melody.

Instinct took over and he picked her up, hands on her ass, directing her legs around him. “I’ll make you buzz, Wildcat.”

Her purse and keys fell to the floor when he laid her on the bed, their hips pushing against each other. Kona knew what she wanted, what she needed. He’d experienced enough moments like this in the three years since he’d been fucking anything that would have him. Senior year of high school had been amazing. Freshman year had made him an expert. This year, it was old hat. So he knew how to touch a girl to make those moans come quick and easy. He knew where to kiss, how fast to move his fingers and his tongue, so that a girl called his name like a chant.

Kona had moves—practiced, tested moves, and he meant to use them just then. He meant to kiss Keira’s neck, slide his hands in her hair as he attacked behind her ear, down to the slope of her shoulder. Then, he meant to get her out of her clothes, move her knees apart, and slip inside her. Those were Kona’s moves. Usually. That’s what he’d figured out worked best when the girl he was with was anxious, eager to get there.

But Keira Riley was not most girls. Keira was blunt and wild and angry. Keira was beautiful and smart and funny. Keira had crawled into Kona’s brain, separated herself from the memory of everyone he’d ever touched until she became the bright, shining spot among the faceless masses. He could not touch Keira like he had every other girl. She was special.

When she moved her knees in, pulling him closer to her, and Kona could feel that sweet, hot warmth rubbing against his dick, he jerked back, wanting to slow down, wanting every touch to be different, to be just for her. He needed to feel her, needed her beautiful blue eyes looking at him, seeing him when he touched her. This was too fast. This was too practiced, and with Keira, Kona didn’t want speed and quick release. He wanted all of her.

Dammit. How had that happened?

“Wait,” he said, taking her arms away from his shoulders before he sat up. “Hang on.”

Keira followed him, lips on his neck, fingers tugging his hair. “What’s wrong?” she said between bites to his ear.

“We have to stop.”

“What?” She slid back, resting against the headboard. “Why?”

Kona didn’t know how to explain himself. How do you tell a woman who clearly wants you, who you clearly want, that you want to take your time with her? That you don’t want the moment over too quickly? As his eyes shifted to her face, Kona felt like Keira had sucker-punched him. Her expression transformed instantly, working from confusion to anger before he could blink twice.

“We need to slow down.”

Kona wished he could read her mind. Most of the time, he didn’t need to; whatever Keira was thinking was typically written on her face in the way her big eyes narrowed to small slits or how those full lips pinched tight like a corkscrew. But, Kona had noticed in the past few weeks that Keira had learned to guard her expressions around him. She’d learned how to hold back and hide at least some of what she was thinking. He didn’t like it, and he especially didn’t like the frown she gave him then, how she pulled her knees to her chest like she was trying to keep him away from her.

“I get it.” Kona thought she really didn’t. That frown on her face hardened, dipped so that there were barely noticeable lines around the corners of her mouth. “It’s fine.” He reached for her when she left the bed, but Keira was fast—slight—and she moved quickly to the door. “I’ll see you later,” she said, hand on the doorknob.

She kept her gaze down, the expression on her face telling him she was either mad or embarrassed, but he still came in front of her, shoulder against the door. When he reached for her face, Keira lurched back as though she couldn’t stand his touch.

“You really don’t get it, Wildcat.”

 “Don’t call me that.” He knew she was angry. She only told him not to call her Wildcat when she was angry or annoyed. He tried again, and this time she let him touch her face, though she closed her eyes, hiding from him.

“Keira, look at me.” Hand shifted to the back of her neck, he pulled her toward him. “What’s wrong?”

When she answered him, lids blinking and barely glancing at him, Kona wanted to punch something. “I don’t do it for you. I get it.” Finally, she looked at him fully. “I know I’m not like the girls you’re usually with. I’m not Ton—”

“Shut up.” He shifted, moved fast to trap her against the door, forced her chin up so she would look at him. “No. You’re not like them. You’re nothing like them. You’re so much more.”

“But you stopped touching me.”

Her voice was so small then, and on any other girl, the tone might sound whiny and weak. But Keira was neither, and in her expression Kona saw real confusion, real hurt. That look gutted him, had the anger in his chest cooling.

“I want you.” When she laughed, a defeated, pathetic sound, Kona’s irritation bubbled. “I want you so much, Wildcat.” He grabbed her hand, brushed it over his still hard and aching dick.

She pulled her hand away and tried to push against his chest. “You’re twenty, Kona. You’d get hard with the right breeze on a windy day.” When she elbowed him, pushing his chest with her arm, Kona grabbed her, picked her up and dropped her on the bed. “Get off me!” Keira’s twisting body, flailing limbs and arms were weak, a halfhearted defense, and Kona knew she didn’t want him going anywhere.

“Stop it,” he said, catching her chin when she twisted her head away from him. “Just stop.” He attacked her mouth, pouring into that kiss all the scattered things fighting for control in his mind. Lust, desire, compassion, tenderness: Kona wanted to give them all to Keira. He leaned back, and Keira was breathless. He loved her like that. “Fucking is too easy, and I remember you said you don’t want easy.” She fought a smile, and the tension in her body eased. “I’m trying to give you what you want, Wildcat.”

She rolled her eyes, but Kona knew she wasn’t angry anymore. “I get CPU’s whormeister in my bed, and he just wants to kiss me.”

Exhaling, Kona rolled onto his side, pulling Keira toward him. “I could fuck you, and it would be good.”

Keira punched his shoulder. “Thanks. Nice having that salt just flooding into my wound.”

“I’m saying, Wildcat. You don’t want good. You want great. Fucking is easy. Fucking is expected, and I do want you.” He pulled her even closer, directing her leg over his. “I want you so much that this screaming voice in my head is telling me to shut the hell up and get you naked. But you’re better than this. You’re better than any of this, and when I have you, when I have all of you, Wildcat, it won’t be easy and fast.” Kona kissed her forehead, and Keira looked up at him. “When I have you, it’ll be slow and long and it will leave you panting.”

She took his kiss gladly, responding to his tongue and his hand flat against her ass with another soft moan. “This is going to be hard,” she said, scooting back from him. Kona released an unrestrained snort, and Keira shook her head, laughing. “That’s not what I mean.”

“Why?” He liked how she felt against him. Liked that her small body fit perfectly underneath his. “I said I wanted to slow down. I didn’t say I’d leave you hanging.”

“What do you mean?”

That first night in her dorm, Kona had guessed that Keira wasn’t used to being around men. She’d been nearly shirtless and scared. She’d responded to his hands on her back, to how close he sat next to her, but she’d also been rigid, nervous. He’d assumed it was because she didn’t know what to do with the sensations working in her body. He’d assumed it was because she’d never been in that situation before. But the night they watched Les Mis, she told him she wasn’t the innocent little creature he thought she was. So why wasn’t she catching his meaning now? Did she lie to him just to throw him off? Kona didn’t think that was Keira’s way.

He leaned on his elbow then, wanting to see her expression, wanting to see if she got all nervous and fidgety like she usually did when she was trying to mess with his head. “You’re really not a virgin? If you weren’t then I’d figure you’d catch my meaning.”

She frowned at him, and one eyebrow came up in a challenge. “I’m not a virgin. I’m not as active as you, but I’m not a virgin.”

“What’s your number?” When Keira sighed, he pulled her closer to him, hand gripping her ass. “Come on, I’ll tell you mine.”

“No, thanks.” Her body took on a small shudder, as though the thought of how many girls Kona had been with was a scary, disgusting thing. “I don’t think I want my head to explode.”

He knew he had a reputation. He knew Keira had been informed about that reputation, but it didn’t annoy him that she thought he was a slut. He knew who he was. Still, if he ever wanted a shot at being with her, Kona knew he’d have to be honest. “I’m clean, smartass. We get tested for the university’s insurance, and I’ve never been with anyone without a condom. Ever.” The idea of anyone touching her bothered Kona more than he wanted to admit to himself, but he had to know. He figured it wouldn’t come close to matching his number, but he still had to know. “Come on, tell me.”

“One.”

Kona thought he’d heard her right, but wasn’t sure. She said the word so quietly that he had to move his head to hear her better. “What?” 

Keira sighed again, and her breath warmed against Kona’s cheek. “Diego Medina. Last fall.”

“Last fall?” Kona did the calculations in his head, figuring that less than a few tumbles almost a year ago would explain some of Keira’s stiffness when he was near her. The thought didn’t make him feel good.

“Yeah. I was feeling rebellious. Leann’s boyfriend, Michael, and Diego are cousins. They got arrested for stealing money out of the poor box at St. Anthony’s our senior year.” She shrugged, waved her hand like that small detail wasn’t as bad as it sounded. “My mom doesn’t like Leann, and she hates Michael. I wanted to annoy her, and I thought dating a Cuban boy with a record would annoy her the most. So when she told me I couldn’t hang out with Leann or her boyfriend, I snuck out and we drove to Atlanta to see Phish.” Keira’s voice was steady, but she took Kona’s fingers in her hands, rubbing over his knuckles as though she needed a distraction as she spoke.

“Diego took my virginity in the backseat of Michael’s Durango while Phish played ‘Free’ a couple thousand feet away.”

“What did your mom do when you got back?”

“She didn’t even know I was gone. The Steamers had a bye week that weekend, and she and Steven got tickets to a charity auction with the head coach. I got home before they did.”

“And what happened with the Diego kid? Why’d you stop seeing him?”

“He got arrested for a B&E in Zachary. He was eighteen by then so he went to Dixon Correctional. As far as I know, he’s still there.”

Kona considered the information, watching Keira’s expression to see if it was sad, to see if her being with that Diego kid was what made her frown the way she did. He didn’t think it was him that had her eyes shining.

“And that was the one time?”

She didn’t answer him immediately, and she brought up her knees, laying Kona’s hand on her thigh as she traced the lines on his palm. “No. He got me drunk two weeks before he went in.” She smiled then, glancing to him once before she raked her fingers over his palm. “I slept with him, but afterward he tried to get me to have a threesome with him and some girl named Dena. She had an incredibly huge ass. I ran out of there quick as I could after Dena kissed me.” Her glance returned, and Kona wondered why her smile was wider then, as though she remembered a detail he knew she wouldn’t share with him. “That was the last time. He gave me a hickey. A gross purple thing and I made sure my mom saw it. I was still pissed she didn’t notice me sneaking off to Atlanta.”

“What did she do?”

Keira’s eyes came up, rolling and she stopped messing with his hand. He didn’t like her not touching him. He didn’t like that just recalling her mother’s reaction to her small rebellion had Keira crossing her arms. “Told me it was tacky and then brought me to the doctor for an HIV test and birth control pills and then said we’d ‘never speak of it again.’”

Kona’s laugh seemed to calm her, and she let him pull her leg over him again. “So you didn’t do the threesome?”

“That’s all you heard in my little story? Me and Dena the big butt girl?”

A quick flash in his head made Kona’s imagination active and greedy. He slid down closer to Keira, nibbling against her collarbone. “She kissed you. That’s hot, Wildcat.”

“God, you’re such a boy. And it wasn’t hot,” she said, pushing him away. She wasn’t angry, the wide stretch of her lips told him that much. “She used too much tongue.”

Kona released a moan as a particularly vivid image of Keira kissing some faceless girl jumped into his mind, but it disappeared when she gave him another shove on his shoulder. He was hard again and wanted so badly to feel her, taste her. He knew it would be a challenge not to take her, but he enjoyed their banter and how comfortable Keira seemed with him then, how easy it had been to calm the heated moments of a few minutes before so that he hadn’t let things get out of hand. Another kiss on her collarbone, and Kona moved his mouth up her neck, then to her earlobe. He wanted to hear that sweet moan again, and he got his wish when Keira’s quiet laughter transformed into a satisfied sigh.

“I only asked because you didn’t catch my meaning.” She frowned as though she’d forgotten how this whole conversation started. “About leaving you hanging.”

The smile she gave him was wicked, pulled so wide that he could almost see her back teeth. Kona loved that smile. It promised filthy things.

“How do you want to not leave me hanging?”

“Did the hickey monster touch you, Wildcat? Really touch you?” Her smile grew lethal then, and when Keira shook her head, telling Kona with one small movement that she hadn’t been touched by Diego like she deserved, his chest constricted, felt tight with excitement. Keira went back against the pillow without a fight when Kona leaned over her, pressed his full weight on top of her, and that wicked, beautiful smile stayed frozen on her face. “He didn’t play with you?” He pushed her shirt up, with a glance to her face, and loved the slow close of her eyelids when his mouth came down on her stomach.

“Not…not like that.”

A small dip of his tongue in her bellybutton and Keira moved her hips, jutting against him. Kona decided that was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. She didn’t stop him when he popped open her button, when he tugged down her jeans until only the thin, black panties she wore were visible. Her stomach was flat and firm, and Kona licked across each ridge of her muscles, growing harder the more skin he kissed.

“Then he was a dumbass.” Two strips of lace on her hipbones, fabric that barely covered her, had Kona itching to snap them with his teeth. He rubbed his nose inside her thigh, nibbled up her leg until one of those black strips was in between his teeth. He pulled the lace down, getting a glimpse of fine, carefully trimmed hair, and then Kona slipped both hands under her ass, growling between breaths when he realized she was wearing a thong. “Can I play with you, Wildcat?” He moved her forward, his mouth returning to the inside of her thigh and Kona inhaled. “I really wanna play with you.”

Keira released a small groan and then her fingers were in his hair gripping, lowering his head. “Show me how much, Kona.”

Awkward Keira did not exist in that dorm room. Kona thought faintly that he didn’t recognize this girl; he might have said that he’d never seen her, but that would have been a lie. He caught a glimpse of her that night in Nathan’s hallway when Kona wasn’t sure if she wanted to kill him or fuck him. At the time, he would have taken either, and then, on her bed, with Keira pushing his head between those firm, fine thighs, he thought he might just die. It would be a happy death, and he’d meet the Reaper with a smile and the memory of Keira’s heady scent and sinister, wicked grin. 

Another growl, Kona wasn’t sure who made the sound, and he slipped her jeans off completely, then those thin, barely there panties flew over his shoulder, and he saw his favorite thing ever in life. Kona rubbed his fingers over her skin, loving how that soft, pink flesh was wet, glistening. His stared at the smooth outer lips, the delicious warmth of her folds as he touched her, worked his fingers against her clit. “I won’t fuck you, Wildcat, not yet, but I’m sure as hell going to devour you.” She was beautiful and perfect, and Kona’s hands shook, his heart hammered hard against his ribs as he lowered over her and took that tempting clit into his mouth.

He had to still her hips; they moved with him as though Keira was reaching for something, as if her body moved on its own toward a release she couldn’t find. Kona helped her along, slipped two fingers inside her, easily finding that sweet spot, and he smiled against her when he felt how tight she was, how wet and warm she was on his tongue.

Next to him, Keira’s legs shook. Kona felt the quick tremble, and he used his free hand to move her leg over his shoulder. “Relax. I’ve got you.” She listened, lifted her right leg to match her left and Kona loved how open she was to him, how much she trusted him with her body. With Keira’s heels digging into his back, Kona kept moving, urged forward by her scent, by the low murmurs she made, how she arched into his mouth the deeper his fingers went.

He felt the ridges of the knot a few inches inside her and bent his fingers, moved his hand around so that his knuckles rubbed against that soft nub. She tasted heady and thick and wonderful, and the faster his fingers worked, the more that sweet spot swelled, and Kona loved the feel of it, the taste of her body as he worked his knuckles faster. And then, his tongue on her clit, Keira’s hips came off the mattress, and he had to chase her, had to concentrate on that spot as she clamped around his fingers, as she screamed his name over and over and he lapped up the small rush that flooded against his tongue.

But it was her face that caught his attention. It was that open, free expression that had his chest feeling tight again, feeling as if his heart was trying to pound right out of his skin. Keira’s smile was blinding, real, and Kona thought, no matter how long he lived, he’d never see anything as beautiful, nothing nearly as uninhibited. It was then Kona realized that Keira had him. He might not want to admit it to her, he might not be ready to speak the words, but Keira Riley had him completely.

“What…what the hell was that?” Kona tried not to laugh at her expression, at the little streak of fear that moved across her face. He crawled beside her, uncaring that his shirt was wet, not bothered that he was still aching against his ever-tightening jeans.

“First time that happened?” He was fascinated by the pink spots coloring her cheeks.

“Well, yeah, but that was…oh God!” Keira covered her face, let her arms shield her from his attentions. He tried pulling them back, wanting to keep staring at those pink cheeks, but Keira was embarrassed, refusing to let him uncover her face. “Oh God, that was gross.”

“It wasn’t gross, Wildcat. It was amazing.”

Slowly, Keira lowered her arms, but she kept her hands over her mouth. “You…you aren’t disgusted?”

He didn’t hold back his laugh and couldn’t help pulling her against his chest. “Fuck no. Why would I be?” Keira stared at him like he was crazy, like what he’d just done to her was the height of depravity, but he wouldn’t let her retreat. That flush still covered her face and though he loved it, though it made her even more beautiful, he couldn’t let her think she should feel ashamed. “Don’t ever be embarrassed by your body’s reaction to me.” He pulled up her chin to get at her mouth. “You’re beautiful when you come, Wildcat. You’re beautiful all the time, but especially when you come for me.”  

That seemed to satisfy her. Keira gave Kona a smile. It was weak, and she still looked flushed, a bit disheveled, but she didn’t avert her eyes or act like she was horrified. She leaned up to kiss him, and Kona wrapped his arms around her, let her lead, loving how fiercely she kissed him. But then she brushed against his shirt and jerked back, looking down at the wet spots over his collar and on his chest.

“I, um, got you wet.”

“Ditto.”

Another quick blush and Keira shook her head. “Let me get you a shirt,” she said, moving from the bed. She didn’t cover up, seemed bold and proud to walk around in front of him in nothing but her bra that hung off one shoulder. Kona licked his lips, reminding himself to get her completely naked next time.

“I doubt you have anything big enough for me, Wildcat.”

She bent over, digging through the dresser on Leann’s side of the room, and Kona sat up, watched the way she moved, loved the smooth contours of her legs, the round, supple curve of her ass and hips. Seeing her like that only made the raging ache in his jeans bite against his waistband.

Keira turned toward him with a gray T-shirt in her hand, and she tossed it to him, offering him a shy smile when his gaze moved up her body. “It’s Michael’s. He left it here a while back. It was about three sizes too big for him, so Leann sleeps in it sometimes.” Kona didn’t move while Keira went to her dresser and slipped on a pair of thin boxers and a white tank top. “It’ll fit,” she said, walking back to the bed.

Disappointed that she was covered up, Kona sighed then moved off the bed to unbutton his shirt. But as each button came undone, Keira stepped closer until she stood in front of him with her eyes wide and searching. Her hands were balled up into fists at her side, and Kona smiled, loving how he could see what she wanted on her face, confused that she didn’t touch him.

“Wildcat,” he said, forgetting about taking off his shirt. She lifted her eyebrows, distracted, but didn’t move her gaze from his chest. “You like this?” Kona pulled off his shirt one shoulder at a time and bit down on his bottom lip when Keira’s eyes grew even wider. He took her wrist, pulling her toward him, and directed her fingers onto his chest. “You can touch me.” She took a step, still staring at him like she’d never seen anything like him before. “Anything I have, you can take.”

“Can I…” She moved in closer, and Kona thought he’d explode from the tentative touches she made against his chest, how her nails tickled his nipple. Her other hand came around his waist, thumb rubbing his side before she moved her fingers over his abdomen. “Can I kiss you…here?” Keira placed an open-mouth kiss on his pec, and Kona’s fingers went straight into her hair.

It took everything in him not to groan at the hot slide of her tongue on his nipple. “You can touch me anywhere, Wildcat. Any fucking where you want. Oh…shit.”

And Kona let her explore his body, tried to hold some semblance of control when Keira’s mouth went over his chest, when her nails slid up his back. One hand on his spine, the other flicking his nipple, and Kona felt staggered, weighted down by how good, how eager she was, like she couldn’t get enough of him.

Keira looked up at him, and those big, blue eyes told him so much. They told him how badly she wanted him, how she couldn’t do without the taste and feel of him. “Kona, you’re almost too much. Almost too perfect.”

“I’m not perfect, Keira.” He moved her head, angled her face closer to him. “Just blessed with good Hawaiian genes.” He liked her smile, liked how it lit up her entire face. And then Kona’s humor vanished as he looked at her, as she moved closer, that beautiful mouth so close and tempting. Her eyes were softer, but burned with something Kona recognized, something that blazed. “Keep looking at me like that, Wildcat, and I’ll forget about going slow.”

“I don’t want slow.” Keira kissed his neck, nibbled up his throat until she pulled his ear between her teeth. “I just want you.”

He lifted her up, legs back where they belonged around his waist, his hands on the sweet swell of her ass, and Kona kissed her hard, forgetting for a moment that she was too good for quick, forgetting that she didn’t want easy, that he needed to set the pace. Her mouth on his, those plump, high tits smashed against his bare chest, had him forfeiting anything he’d told her about being calm. He was going to take her. The bed was right there, just next to him, and he even managed to sit on it, with her still wrapped around him. Kona tried to remember how many condoms he had in his wallet, how he had to be gentle with her, and then the door flew open, and Leann’s loud shout of “Oh, shit!” stopped all thought.

“Leann,” Keira said, extracting herself from Kona’s lap.

“I’m sorry. I…shit, I didn’t think…” The girl turned around, moving quickly to her side of the room to dig through her closet. Keira followed her, and Kona used the interruption to finally put on that gray T-shirt. He heard their low whispers, the little reprimands Leann made to Keira that had Kona’s temper flaring.

“What exactly did I interrupt?” he heard Leann whisper. He couldn’t hear what Keira said—her voice was lower, calmer—but Kona did see how quickly Keira’s demeanor changed, how she let whatever Leann said to her transform her.

Finally, tired of the bickering, Kona faced them. “I didn’t do anything, if that’s what you’re worried about.” The two girls stopped arguing, both quickly directing their attention to Kona. He hated that Keira wouldn’t look at him, that she curled her arms over her chest like she was hiding again. “And, if I’m being honest, Leann, it’s really none of your business what we were doing.”

“Look, Kona, my cousin is…”

“Your cousin is an adult and fully capable of making her own decisions,” Keira interrupted. Kona was impressed. Keira dropped her arms to her side, and she glared at Leann with her eyes shining. “You got what you need, right?” Keira nodded toward the bag in Leann’s hand, and her cousin nodded once. “Good. I’ll see you tomorrow after you get back from rehearsal.”

“Keira…”

She stopped whatever Leann was going to say by moving across the room to open the door. “Night, Leann.”

Leann looked once at Kona as though he would back her up, but he only offered her a smirk and then a dismissive jerk of his head, and the girl left the room.

“Sorry about that,” Keira said, closing the door behind her.

That look was still in Keira’s eyes, the one that told Kona she wanted to forget Leann had stopped them. But the mood had shifted, and Kona didn’t know if that interruption had really been a bad thing. Keira still looked so open, so willing to give in. A flash of Leann’s shocked expression came back to him then. It was familiar, something Kona had seen too often when he’d convinced some girl to go home with him. Their friends, the people who cared about them, always had the same look on their faces.

“She’s just worried you’re making bad choices.”

Keira considered him for a moment, moving in front of him with those arms back around her waist. She wasn’t guarding herself, but she didn’t seem like she wanted to touch him either. “Am I?”

He rubbed his face, trying to clear away the mild guilt he felt. He’d almost let things slip out of control. Again. “I don’t know.” Keira should know what she was getting with him. Kona had no idea where things were heading. He knew he liked her. He knew with very little effort, Keira could have him completely under her spell. He was close to that now and this was only their first date. “I’m not a saint. I’m nowhere close to being good enough for you.”

Keira’s arms fell to her side, and she stepped into Kona’s space. That sweet scent on her skin was musky now, still tempting, still intoxicating. “Why don’t you let me decide that?”

He liked how bold she was, how that awkward girl who threatened him in class was gone. Weeks with Kona, with him pushing her buttons, with him insinuating himself into her life, had changed Keira, and he liked the fire that she held in her belly. It drew him to her, made him helpless. Kona took her face between his hands and gave her a kiss, brief but lingering. If he kept at it, he knew he wouldn’t ever be able to walk away from her.

“It’s late. It’s probably a good idea for me to jet.” Kona had to bite his bottom lip to keep from smiling at Keira’s expression. “You don’t want me to go?”

“I wouldn’t hate it if you stayed.”

Kona tried to ignore the double beat of his heart. “That’s tempting, Wildcat, but if I stayed I couldn’t promise you’d avoid those bad decisions.”

“Kona, I get the feeling you might end up being my favorite mistake.”