The Force of Gravity(37)

We enjoy our smorgasbord all the while feeling like I’m in a magical dream. Right now it’s just us. No school, no parents, no complications. Just the two of us, enjoying a beautiful breakfast together.

“I don’t want to take you home until it’s dark out, is that okay?” he says, setting down his fork.

“That’s fine with me.” I don’t want to go home at all.

“This is going to be hard, Kaley. Especially for the next month. I can’t call or text you—I can’t leave any evidence. I hope that doesn’t upset you.”

I lean back in my chair. “No, I understand. I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

“You can’t even tell Emily,” he warns.

“I know,” I say, nodding.

“She doesn’t know anything about us, does she? Be honest.”

I lift my eyes to his. “No, I swear! Don’t worry. It’s difficult, yes, but it’s fine. I understand the seriousness of it.” I lean over and trace my fingertips along his jawline.

His lips part as his gaze falls to my mouth.

“I won’t say anything,” I whisper.

He leans in and kisses me deeply, tasting like syrup.



AFTER CLEANING UP the kitchen, we make our way into the living room.

“Maybe you should call Emily real quick,” he says as we sit down on the sofa.

“Why?” I ask.

“You’re going to be staying here all day. I don’t want her showing up at your house or something and have everybody start wondering where you are.”

He’s right. I should at least feel her out. Maybe I can tell her that I’m home sick with a hangover.

“Okay,” I say, running back to his bedroom. I grab my phone from my bag and slide my finger across the screen as I make my way back to the living room. “Crap.”

His posture stiffens. “What?”

“I have four missed calls from Emily.”

“Call her.” His voice is firm.

“I’m so sorry, I should’ve texted her last night or something,” I say, cradling the phone to my ear.

She picks up in less than a ring. “Hello?”

I try to keep my voice casual. “Hey. Sorry I missed your calls this morning,”

“Kaley, where are you?” she says panicked.

“I’m at home,” I say, hoping she hasn’t already checked there.

“I had no idea where you were, and you weren’t answering. You freaked me out!”

“I’m sorry, Ems. Everything’s okay.”

“Everything’s not okay,” she says, her voice stiff. “Have you talked to Tommy?”

I squeeze my eyes shut and pinch the bridge of my nose. Here comes the “Poor Tommy” speech. “No, I haven’t,” I say, dropping my hand to my side, “and please spare me the lecture. I changed my mind about last night, and I’m not going to feel guilty about it.”

Silence penetrates the other end of the line, and I check my phone to see if we’re still connected. When I see that we are, I snap.

“Hello?”

“You should call Tommy, Kay,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper.

I sigh. “I will. Eventually. Maybe tonight or something. I don’t want to deal with it right now.” I glance at Elijah. “I’m sorry I pissed everyone off, but I’m not going to let you guys make me feel bad for changing my mind.”

A heavy sigh sounds through the phone.

“Are you seriously mad at me, Ems? Because that really hurts if you are,” I say. I’ve never really told her how much it bothers me when she always takes Tommy’s side. Maybe it’s time I do.

“Kaley,” she says quietly. “Tommy slept with Avery last night.”

Air sucks out of my lungs, and my limbs go cold. “He . . . what?” I whisper, slowly sitting down on the couch. I faintly feel Elijah slide over next to me.

“He slept with Avery. Trust me—I’m not mad at you.”

I clutch my throat. Sure, I’m guilty of sleeping over at my teacher’s house—and even trying to have sex with him; okay, and technically cheating on him a month ago—but Tommy doesn’t know that. He thinks I was just too scared last night and went home.

“Avery had a party in her room,” Emily continues, “and somehow Tommy ended up there. I’m not sure how it all went down, but when Derek knocked on his door this morning he saw Avery in his bed.”

“Holy hell, Emily. Well, are you sure they didn’t just pass out or something?”

“I’m sure. Tommy confirmed it with Derek.”

“I-I don’t know what to say . . .”

“I know. I’m sorry, Kay. Do you want me to come over?”

“No!” I yelp. “Uh—no. Don’t come over,” I stammer, trying to recover. “I really don’t feel well. Maybe you can stop by tonight. I just need to sleep this off.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. I’ll text you tonight when you can come over, okay?”

“Okay,” she says through a sigh. “I really wanted to make Tommy confess directly to you, but I just wanted you to know.”

“No, I’m glad you told me. I just need some time to . . . process this.”

“Okay, text me later and I’ll come right over.”

“I will.” We disconnect, and I lower my head.

“Kaley? What’s wrong?”

I lift my gaze to Elijah’s concerned face.

“Tommy slept with Avery last night,” I say. Even as I repeat Emily’s words, shock courses through me like I’m hearing it for the first time.

His head jerks back. “Seriously?”

I snap out of my daze and stand up. “Look, I know I’m not innocent in all of this, but he thought I just went home. It’s not like he knew I was cheating on him, so he just decided to bang some stupid skank!”

“Come here,” he says softly. He takes both of my hands and pulls me down next to him, shifting his body toward me. “He never deserved you, Kaley. Trust me.” The sincerity in his voice is heartening.

“I’m so glad I didn’t sleep with him last night,” I say, slumping back against the couch. “If he’s capable of this, he doesn’t deserve my virginity.”

Elijah’s body goes rigid. “Your . . . what?”

Shit.

“Um, my virginity. . . . I was going to lose my virginity to him last night,” I confess, wishing for a giant hole to bury myself in.

Anger flashes through his eyes, and he jumps off the couch. “You’re a virgin?”

I cower in my seat. “Yes,” I say, bracing myself. “Why, does that turn you off?” Of course it does. Why would he be interested in a young girl with no experience?

“Kaley!” His legs are planted wide, his arms crossed. I’ve seen him in this stance a few times while coaching a game. “First of all,” he says, lowering his voice a little, “don’t be ridiculous. It does the opposite of turn me off, frankly, but that’s beside the point.” He rubs the back of his neck and pauses. “I just assumed you and Tommy were . . . intimate. You guys come off that way, so I’m just baffled to be honest. And truthfully, you seemed to know what you were doing last night.” I suppress a smile as he continues. “Second of all,” he says, his voice turning cold, “Bradford’s a dick. I know he’s just a typical, immature high school boy, but I always thought he was a complete dick. I hated seeing you two together.”

“You did?” I say, scrambling to understand. I can’t recall anyone referring to Tommy as anything negative—ever. Everyone I know practically worships him. Kind of refreshing, to be honest.

“And third of all,” he says, interrupting my thoughts. “I cannot believe that you were going to let me take your virginity without me even knowing!”

I put my hands up. “Please calm down, Elijah.”

“I’m serious, Kaley. I’m so glad I didn’t sleep with you last night.”

His words prick my heart.

“Hey,” he whispers as soon as he notices my reaction. He kneels in front of me. “That’s not what I mean.” He cups my face, forcing me to meet his eyes. “I just mean that I would hate myself if I slept with you so early on in our relationship—and it would’ve killed me if I’d stolen your virginity last night without having known. You are worth so much more than that, Kaley. Bradford sure as hell doesn’t know it, but I do.”

A lump builds in my throat. “I never wanted to sleep with Tommy,” I say through gritted teeth. “I wasn’t being careless with you last night. I haven’t wanted to be with anyone in that way . . . until I met you.” I cringe at my honesty.

He draws closer, his warm brown eyes piercing into mine. “I want to be with you, too, believe me. But I want to wait. I’m not in this to just sleep with you casually. I hope you know I would never risk my career for some meaningless sex. . . . I want to make love to you, Kaley.”

Holy. Hell.

“Is that okay with you?” His gaze pins me to the couch, and I nod, unable to formulate a response. He grants me a crooked smile and shifts his body next to me, pulling me into his arms. I sink into his chest.

“Can I ask you something?” I say after a long silence.