“Um…. Okay, well make yourself at home then. I won’t be long,” she said weakly as she headed towards the back hallway.

I nodded and grabbed the TV remote, holding it so tightly that I was actually surprised that I hadn’t crushed the damn thing. She was about to get na**d in the apartment and had just invited me in… and I’d turned her down? What the fuck? Had I seriously lost my mind? Player Nate was screaming at me, telling me to get my loser ass off the sofa and follow her into the bathroom and have my way with her until she couldn’t even remember Josh’s name anymore. I squeezed my eyes closed as I heard the shower turn on; I couldn’t stop myself imagining the water cascading down her body, caressing every inch of her skin.

“Oh. My. God. Get a grip of yourself, Nate!” I scolded, gripping my hands in my hair and putting my forehead on my knees, trying to think of anything other than her na**d body and the flirty expression that she’d shot me when she asked me to wash her back. My feet were twitching, my legs bouncing on the spot, as I tried desperately to remember why it was that I was staying strong and waiting.

Reason one: she’d been hurt.

Two: she didn’t trust guys.

Three: this was what she wanted.

And finally, reason four: I’d already let her down and wanted to prove to her that I was serious about her and DJ.

As I listed them in my head they just didn’t seem to matter to me anymore. My jeans were literally straining against my erection; I was so hard that I had to shift in my seat to relieve some of the pressure. I groaned and sat back, unconsciously cupping my hand on my crotch, trying to ease some of the pressure and calm down, but nothing helped. I tried thinking of sports. I tried picturing my wrinkly old English teacher na**d. I even tried imagining myself with Minnie again, just to get this f**king wood to go away, but the damn thing seemed to have a mind of its own, and the only thing it was thinking about at the moment was Rosie.

Finally she was done, I heard her come out of the room but I couldn’t turn around.

“Nate,” she called, her voice both seductive and nervous at the same time.

Oh, dear God. “Yeah?” I croaked, not turning to look at her.

She laughed quietly. “Er… you want to come to bed then, or…”

I turned in my seat, and the air rushed out of my lungs in one big gust. She’d changed into a black tank top that clung to her body and little black boy shorts that moulded to her figure. She was amazing. She bit her lip, looking at me worriedly as she ran her hand through her hair, letting it down from the loose twist she’d had all day. She was the image of perfection, and I knew right then that wild horses couldn’t drag me from this apartment.

I stood up and nodded, praying that my jeans would hide the hard-on I was sporting. I didn’t really need to worry about that though because her eyes never left mine for a second as I walked towards her. When I got to her, I took her hand in mine and kissed her softly.

“If I died right now I would be an incredibly happy man, because the last thing I got to see, was the most beautiful sight I could ever imagine,” I whispered.

She gasped and stepped closer, crushing her body against mine. I could almost hear her heart hammering in her chest. “That was the sweetest line I’ve ever heard,” she said quietly.

I smiled and shook my head, touching my forehead to hers as I looked into her big brown eyes. “That wasn’t a line, that was me being honest.”

She stepped back, walking backwards towards her bedroom, her eyes not leaving mine as she tugged on my hand, making me follow her. As I matched my step to hers, the air practically crackled with sexual tension.

I need to be strong. Say no. Just hold her like I planned. Resist, Nate, you can do it.

She pushed the door shut behind me and stepped closer, gripping the bottom of my T-shirt and pulling it over my head. She smiled as she trailed her fingers across my stomach. “I kind of miss the Rosie’s bitch art work,” she teased.

I laughed and kissed her lightly. In the dim light of her bedside lamp, she looked way too special for me. What on earth had I done right to deserve a girl like her? I always knew I was a good-looking guy, I could get any girl that I wanted, but I wasn’t actually man enough to keep a girl like Rosie. She was just too incredible for words, and sooner or later she would realise that I wasn’t good enough for her and she’d dump my ass. The thought was actually painful because I didn’t want to be without her now.

As we kissed, her hands went to the belt of my jeans, her fingers working on it, her hands so close to my crotch that I could barely stand it. I wanted her so much, but I was going to wait. I had to wait. I had to be strong.

Because she seemed to be fumbling nervously, I pushed her hands away and unbuckled it, ripping open my buttons at the same time. I kissed her again and walked her backwards to the bed, stopping when the back of her knees hit the side. She whimpered, and the sound almost drove me crazy.

As she lay down in the bed, I pulled back, turning slightly as I pulled off my jeans, trying to rearrange downstairs so it wasn’t so freaking obvious. I threw my jeans on the chair by the side of her bed and turned back to her.

She’d climbed into the bed and had lifted the cover, looking at me expectantly, waiting for me to get in with her. I smiled as I slipped in next to her, filling the empty space. “So, is this my side of the bed now, Stripes?” I asked, grinning like a fool at the thought of claiming the space in her bed.

She laughed and shrugged. “I guess.”

I groaned appreciatively as she pressed herself against me, I could feel her curves pressed against my body and my mouth actually started to water. I rolled to the side and pulled her impossibly closer to me, my gaze locked on hers as I spoke.

“I’m claiming this side. You don’t ever let another man in your bed,” I stated, trying to come across as playful, but the whole Josh situation had put a hard, possessive edge to my tone so it came across a lot more serious than I’d intended.

She smiled and traced her hands up my chest, her nails scratching gently, before gripping one hand in the back of my hair. “No other men? Not even DJ?” she teased.

I pressed my body to hers, unable to resist grinding my erection against her hip, making her gasp and look at me with wide eyes. “DJ’s allowed, but other than that I’m the only guy you sleep with.”

She nodded, biting her lip, her eyes wide and excited. “I love it when you get all forceful. It’s a total turn-on how masterful you are, Officer Peters,” she whispered, tugging on my hair slightly, making me move closer to her, our lips almost meeting.

Officer Peters. Why does that sound so naughty coming out of her mouth?

“And I love this tiny little outfit you’re wearing, Ms York,” I purred, rolling on top of her more, my mouth brushing against hers as I spoke. I wanted desperately to close the distance and kiss her until we couldn’t breathe, but I wasn’t sure how much teasing my body could take. How long would it be before sexual frustration actually killed me? Would I be the first man in the world to die of it?

She smiled. “Personally, I don’t like these pyjamas; I think maybe you should take them off me.”

Oh, dear God. Strength, Nate! Use the inner strength! I wasn’t actually sure I possessed enough inner strength for this girl. I rolled onto my back, pulling her on top of me, making her squeak from the shock and giggle excitedly.

I opened my mouth to speak, but she sat up, her peachy little behind pressing heavily on my erection making me moan quietly at the feel of it. This really was like torture. She smiled at me wickedly.

“Ooh, someone’s a little excited,” she stated, blushing slightly as she shifted her hips, grinding on me.

“A little excited doesn’t quite cover it,” I admitted, my voice husky and thick with lust.

She grinned and moved, leaning over and grabbing something from her bedside cabinet. She shifted back to me again, sitting on my crotch heavily, the pressure almost driving me out of my mind. She dangled the little candy necklace from one finger. “I have big plans for this.” She trailed it down my chest, and I groaned at the tickling sensation.

What were the reasons that I didn’t want to do this? I scrambled desperately for the reasons that I wanted to wait. There were four of them. I’d listed them earlier, something about wanting to prove myself. Think, Nate, think!

When the material of my boxers moved, my whole body tensed up as I realised what she meant. I sat up and shook my head. I couldn’t let her do that; I couldn’t let her touch me yet. I still couldn’t focus on the reasons why, but I knew that there were reasons, and that was good enough to stop this before it got too far. She frowned, seeming confused as I grabbed her hand that was just about to push down the front of my briefs.

“Stripes, I’ve never wanted a girl to do that to me more than I want you to do that at this moment,” I admitted. “But I told you last night, I want to wait.” My voice said one thing, but my body was screaming at me for the complete opposite.

What am I doing? She’s offering a f**king bl*w j*b that includes a candy necklace, and I’m refusing? Something is seriously wrong with me!

She shook her head. “Nate, it’s fine. I want to,” she whispered, her eyes locked on mine.

I kissed her roughly as I laid back down, bringing her with me as I rolled so that I was hovering above her. I pulled out of the kiss and just looked at her, I could see her desire clear across her face, she wasn’t lying, she really did want me in that way – but that just wasn’t enough for me, I wanted more than that.

“I still want to wait and prove to you that I’m not like the ass of an ex that you have. I want to stick to what we agreed,” I said sternly. She pouted, and I couldn’t help but chuckle at her disappointed face. “You don’t think I’m worth waiting for?” I teased.

She pursed her lips, pretended to think. “Well, I’ve only had a few teasers here and there, but you’ve passed the test so far,” she finally answered.

I nodded. “Of course I did, I ace all tests.” I kissed the base of her throat, trailing my tongue along her collarbone, making her breathing speed up.

“Who said you aced? You barely scraped a C,” she joked, giggling when I bit her neck warningly. “Okay, okay, a B?”

I shook my head and pulled back, grinning at her. “Tell me I don’t rock your world. Make it convincing though, I’ll know if you’re lying,” I challenged.

She opened her mouth to speak, and I waited for the witty comeback, but she just looked at me and closed her mouth again. “Fine,” she whispered. “But you don’t just rock my world, Nate, you’re shaking it to the core.” All of her cockiness and confidence was gone now.

I paused at the intensity of the words; clearly, we weren’t just talking about the physical stuff now. I traced my finger across her cheek, even in the dim light in the room I could see that she was blushing.

Okay, Nate, say something nice back. Tell her that she’s making you crazy, that you can’t get enough of her, that you’re totally falling in love with her…

Did I say any of those nice things though? Nope. No, I didn’t.

“Well that’s great, it means that you’ll fall for me pretty soon, and then I won’t have to keep jacking off to a picture of you,” I stated instead.

What the fuck? I slapped my palm on my forehead at my stupidity, and she just burst out laughing. I shook my head in disbelief. Why couldn’t I ever say anything romantic? She tells me I’m shaking her world, and I make some stupid comment about jacking off? What an idiot.

“Sorry,” I muttered.

She was still laughing underneath me. “Nate, you are too funny for words. I swear I haven’t laughed this much with a guy in,” she shook her head, “actually, I don’t think I’ve ever laughed this much with a guy.”

I looked at her apologetically; I really didn’t understand her at all. She just seemed to accept and like everything about me, even my perverted, idiotic side. I was an emotional imbecile; I had no idea what I was doing or what I should be saying to a girl. I had no idea how to actually be in a relationship with a girl and make them feel special or appreciated. Yet she was still smiling and looking at me like I was f**king Superman.

Okay, second chance, Nate. Say something romantic back. Something like, she’s the most incredible girl you’ve ever met, that she brightens your day, or that you think about her all the time when you’re not with her…

Did I say any of those things though? Again, no, I didn’t.

“Well, I’ve never had this much fun with a girl that I wasn’t banging,” I said. She started laughing again, and I immediately realised what I’d said. I groaned loudly. “Can we just pretend I stopped talking right after the word, ‘girl’? That I said, I’ve never had this much fun with a girl, and then I just stopped talking?” I asked, hopefully.

She raised one eyebrow, still grinning. “You should just stop talking all together and kiss me already,” she suggested, tightening her arms around my neck, making me press harder against her.

I sighed contentedly and pressed my lips to hers. We had an intense make out session for a good half an hour and then we broke apart. We just laid there on our sides, our chests pressed against each other’s, talking into the early hours of the morning about everything and anything. When she yawned, I pulled her closer to me, and she snuggled into my chest, her legs tangling in with mine as I wrapped my arms around her.

I kissed the top of her head and fell asleep with a smile on my face. That was easily the best day and night of my life.