With Every Heartbeat

She let out a long sigh and glanced away, pulling her arms more snuggly around her. “Sander said I was his first.”

When she said nothing else, Ten squinted and leaned in closer to her. “Who the fuck is Sander?”

Caroline lifted her face to send him a searing glare. His eyes widened before he said, “Oh.” Then he wrinkled his face into a grimace. “Sander? His name’s Sander? What a stupid, fucked-up name.”

A grin lit Caroline’s face before she contorted it into a scowl. “Says the guy who goes by Ten.”

Ten shifted closer to her. “You don’t call me Ten.”

She lifted her chin and stepped in toward him as well. “And I’m never going to.”

“They’re going to kiss,” I leaned up on my tiptoes to whisper into Quinn’s ear. “It looks like they’re going to kiss. Doesn’t it?”

He nodded and glanced at me, and whoa, suddenly it felt like I was going to kiss...Quinn. His lips were right there and his eyes were hooded and sleepy sexy as if kissing me—and maybe a little more—was the only thing on his mind.

Oh my God, I wanted to kiss him so bad.

I lowered my gaze. “Do you think we should let them?” I asked...when really I was asking if we should let us. There was all kinds of wrong about kissing Quinn Hamilton again. But I could only concentrate on how right it would feel to press myself against him again, to wind my arms around his neck and—

“I don’t know.” He glanced toward Ten and Caroline. “Noel would lose it if they got together. But you can tell how much they like each other.”

When his gaze veered back to me, I was sure he wasn’t just talking about Ten and Caroline liking each other.

“Yeah, they do. But the things keeping them apart are kind of a big deal.”

He winced and twenty feet away, Ten seemed to come to his senses as well.

“Let me tell you something about Sander and his claim about you being his first. The douchebag was lying.”

“What?” Caroline shrieked. I think she was a second away from slapping him or scratching his face off.

“Just...hear me out. The rich prick went out and found the poorest, most beautiful, loneliest girl from the crappiest trailer park across town, fed you a bunch of pretty words to get into your panties, and as soon as he knocked you up, he went running and crying to mommy and daddy to take care of it. Yeah...I’d say the fucker’s been around.”

My mouth fell open. When Quinn and I turned to look at each other, I knew he was as shocked to hear about Caroline’s past as I was.

“Wow,” Caroline said, her voice cracking. “When you say it that way, it really does make me look like a pathetic, naive idiot.”

“No. Shit, don’t cry.” His eyes filled with the saddest, achiest expression. But as soon as he reached out her way, he fisted his hand and brought it back to his mouth. “Damn it, I didn’t tell you that to make you cry.” Then he threw his arms in the air as if defeated. “Jesus, fine. I’m going to say three more things, and then we’re never going to talk about this again, okay?”

She nodded.

“Okay, good.” He nodded too as if he had no idea what three things he wanted to tell her. But then he held up a finger. “Number one. I’m an idiot. A hundred percent of the shit that comes out of my mouth should not be taken seriously. I have no filter and I don’t think anything through. Nothing I say should ever have the power to make you cry. Two—”

“Wait.” Caroline lifted a hand to stop him. “If number one is that I shouldn’t listen to you, then why are you even bothering to go through numbers two and three?”

Ten growled out a sound of impatience. “Fine. Ninety percent of the shit that comes out of my mouth should be ignored. Numbers two and three should not. In fact, two and three might just be the most important things I’ll ever say to you. So, two...”

He paused a moment as if waiting for her to intervene. When she didn’t, he continued. “Sander fucking lied to you. He is a liar, and an asshole, and that’s how he works to get a girl’s attention.”

Caroline straightened her back, looking freshly ticked off. “And you know this from experience, I assume.”

“No. There are a million freaking ways to get a girl to spread her legs for you, and lying isn’t one I use, but I know that trick when I see it. And he used it on you. You were used, and you should not spend another day of your life hurting over that pathetic excuse of human space, because three, you are amazing.”