I slid her close to me again, and we both pulled out the various pictures and love notes I’d given her. She had dried the rose I gave her the summer before our junior year, its pedals flat and crisp now. She giggled when I tried to sniff it, and scrunched my nose at its stink. “It’s for keep-saking, not smelling, idiot,” she joked, giggling a little quietly.

I sat back after a while and just watched her as she went through the various items she’d saved in that box. I could tell when she was reaching back for fond memories, her body language telling me she was happy and remembering all of the good that was us. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Nolan had always been beautiful, uniquely beautiful. She didn’t need makeup, or hairstyles, or skimpy clothing. She was a what-you-see-is-what-you-get American-blooded girl. Her long, brown, wavy hair caressed her shoulders, and framed her big eyes—eyes that couldn’t bluff against her feelings if her life depended on it. Yes, she’d always been a beautiful girl. But as a woman? She was f**king stunning. And while the curves and softness of her naked body and the sexiness of her lips drove me wild, it was the entire package that had me starving for air. She was it for me. And I had to have her, for always.

She was walking into the kitchen to put the boxes back on the counter, when I noticed she’d paused in front of one of Rosie’s sprigs of mistletoe that hung from one of the wooden archways. I raced to my feet and was next to her in seconds, my chest flat to her back while I slowly slid my hands up the sides of her arms, over her shoulders and into her hair, lifting it to reveal her long, slender neck. I breathed against it softly at first, smelling the strawberry scent of her hair and slightly tasting her skin before biting at her earlobe. I felt her body quiver, and she started to turn to face me, her eyes cautious, but full of want. I pointed up above her as she faced me. “Mistletoe,” I grinned, tilting one side of my mouth up, sinisterly. “You can’t mess with mistletoe. I have to kiss you, it’s the rule.”

Nolan’s face slid into a smile then too, her teeth grazing her bottom lip while her eyes shifted between mine and my mouth, her breathing getting more and more ragged with every second. My palms were resting on her hips, but they were hungry to touch her, feel her. I slid them to her back, and up the bottom of her shirt until I was gripping her bare skin, feeling the heat of it along my fingertips as I worked my way up and down, still holding her gaze.

She stepped into me more, our chests touching, and her nose tickling the center of my body, right where my heart lives. She tilted her head to look straight up at me, biting her lip harder now, her eyelids heavy. I felt her hands grip the bottom of my shirt and begin to pull it up, so I helped her pull it over my head and discard it on the floor. Her hands continued to roam, gripping my stomach, and then grazing up my chest and to my chin and neck and then back down. Our eyes were locked, and the tension was f**king undeniable. I wanted her. And she was giving me permission. But I was fighting with myself, afraid it was too soon, that our trust hadn’t been mended enough.

I was lost in my head when I felt the coolness of her lips against my chest as she began kissing her way up to my neck, my breathing failing me now. I had a solid grip on the back of the sweatpants she was wearing, like a leash keeping my hands in check. I didn’t have much restraint left in me, though. And when Nolan reached down to pull her own shirt up and over her head, pressing her bare skin against mine fiercely, reaching into my hair and pulling my mouth to hers hard, I lost control over everything.

Our tongues tangled as I reached behind her and lifted her to me, her legs wrapping around me and holding me to her tightly. “We can’t stay here,” I said into her ear as I kissed my way up and down her neck.

“Okay,” she whispered, kissing me again and holding on tighter as I turned to the stairs, and carried her all the way to my room. I kicked the door closed behind me and walked us over to my bed, my lips never once leaving hers. I leaned forward, laying her down, and held myself above her. I stopped kissing her just long enough to look into her wanting eyes—just long enough to make sure this was okay, and okay tonight. When she slid up the bed and pulled me with her, I had the confirmation I needed.

I felt Nolan reaching for my jeans, and I stood to pull them off, returning to her in seconds, almost as if my body would suffocate without her touch. I peeled her bra down her shoulders before removing that, too. I kissed her br**sts, taking my time, not wanting this night to end. I rolled her on top of me then, and she sat up, straddling me, her hands digging into my chest for balance, and her hair draping over our faces. I reached up to tuck it behind her ears, and she licked at her lips softly to moisten them. Fuck. I was done.