His hand was strong. It wasn’t too soft or too rough. Her fingertips rested on his knuckles, which felt big and bony. He probably cracks his fingers too much.
She slightly moved her fingertips and could feel a scrape on his middle knuckle, thinking he seemed like the type that would punch walls.
They reached their art class and Nero nodded his goodbye to Vincent, who had followed them the whole way there, walking a few steps behind.
Elle decided to pose the same question. “Have you three always been inseparable?” Elle asked as they took their seats.
Nero laughed. “Yeah, pretty much. Our fathers are all friends, so we were basically forced to like each other when we were young. Now we’re one big family.”
“Aww, that’s actually really cute and ador—”
“Shh… No, it’s not, Elle.” He was looking around the room for someone that could have heard.
Elle couldn’t help laughing. “That’s so adorable your fathers are friends—” As Nero tried to cover her mouth to get her to quiet down, she kept giggling and moved her face out of the way, grabbing his hands so she could finish. “And so are all their sons. It’s cute, like a Disney movie.” She laughed hysterically at that last bit, bringing tears to her eyes.
“You’ve done it now.” He stood up and took her hand, making her stand and walk with him to the back of the classroom toward the art supply closet.
Her laugh still filled the air. “What are you doing?” she barely managed to get out.
“Getting my thank you,” he gritted out.
Elle immediately stopped laughing. Shit.
Chapter Nine
Walk Beside the Beast
Nero forced Elle inside the closet. She seriously regretted teasing him now. As he shut the door, it was no longer funny.
Nero pushed her against the wall.
“I’m—I’m sorry. I won’t joke about how cute it is again.” She thought Nero looked at her like a wolf and she was his prey. He grabbed a piece of her hair and spun it around his finger. “I mean, it definitely isn’t cute. Nope, it’s manly that all the fathers and sons are all best friends.” Elle was more and more nervous with each word she spoke. She knew she wasn’t making it better.
“You’re not helping yourself out here, Elle.” He placed his hand under her ear, his fingers grasping her hair with his palm resting on the side of her neck, positioning her for the taking.
Elle didn’t know what to do. She blurted out something she hoped would save her. “Don’t. I’ve never been kissed before.”
Nero looked at her a second and saw she wasn’t lying. He rubbed his thumb back and forth across her jawline. “All right. Well, for the first time only, I’ll just take a small kiss.”
Elle’s heart stopped beating. “Here?”
Nero nodded and leaned his face down, his mouth an inch from hers. “Here.”
Her stomach filled with butterflies. Elle could only close her eyes as his lips touched hers. He didn’t force it; he’d said it perfectly, just a small kiss. It was just a brief second of his lips closing over her bottom lip, and then it was gone.
When Elle opened her eyes, the fluttering in her stomach didn’t stop. He looked hungrier than before, but he pulled away. Elle knew she better leave before the wolf changed his mind about a small kiss. Without a word or sound, she scooted out the door, keeping her head down. Elle was too embarrassed to look at anyone who might have noticed her and Nero going in the closet. She took her seat, staring at the table, her mind a jumbled mess.
She saw her poster appear on the table before her, and then Nero took his seat beside her. She definitely couldn’t look at him after that, so she quickly pulled out some paper and started writing, spending most of her time at the task. It was hard to concentrate after what had happened, yet she really was too embarrassed to even look at him.
She would peer out of the corner of her eyes every now and then when she knew he wasn’t paying any attention to her. The next time, when her eyes glanced out, she noticed his knuckles. She had felt the scrapes but hadn’t realized how inflamed they were. They were all bright red. Before she put much thought into it, the bell rang. Instinct kicked in, and she stood up to retrieve Chloe.
Nero took her hand. “No, Amo is bringing her to you, and we’ll all walk out together.”
Elle watched the students leave before her, feeling odd; she was always the first one out. “Please, let me go get her.”
“Elle, look at me.” Elle looked down at Nero after she realized he wasn’t going to let her go if she didn’t. “Do you trust me?”