Over the Phone

Chapter Eight

Adam felt so warm; the heat seeped through his chest and spread through his limbs, leaving him sleepy and content. He lifted a hand to wipe the sleep from his eyes, but a veil of dark hair moved with his arm. He turned his hand over and let the silky strands slip between his fingers.

 Chloe. Her head still rested on his chest, the source of the warmth, as if she hadn't moved all night. He stroked her hair, a sleepy smile on his face as he remembered how she'd comforted with him during the night. He had fallen completely head over heels for her and was ridiculously happy to have her trust him enough to stay with him after what she'd seen last night...

She stirred in his arms and he wrapped both arms around her, hoping she wouldn't move away; it felt so right with her against his chest. She shifted again and he breathed in her unique scent; it made him feel almost dizzy.

"Good morning," she said and snuggled against him, pressing her head underneath his chin. He smiled.

"Good morning, beautiful." She smiled and her cheeks turned a pretty pink.

"Oh God, you're really here," she said out loud and tried to squirm away. Adam held on, not ready to lose her touch yet.

"Yes ma'am, and thrilled by it," he confessed, looking her straight in the eye. She blushed bright red and hid her face in the crook of his neck. He rubbed her back and chuckled.

"Do you want to get some breakfast," he asked.

"Yes, but I don't really want to move yet." Again she blushed, and she moved even closer to him under the blanket, but as she had moved during the night, the shirt she had borrowed had ridden up her legs. Her bare thighs brushed against his. Adam barely stifled a groan. His arms constricted around her and he wanted to kiss her so bad, but refused to when she was laying next to him in bed; if he kissed her now, it could easily go too far.

"Neither do I. But we really should." He got up out of bed before realizing he was only wearing his underwear; he went red from hairline to collarbone.

Please, God, don't let her eyes drop... He quickly grabbed a pair of pants and handed her own to her from where she'd neatly folded them and placed them on the dresser.

"Come on, I'll take you to breakfast." She slid into her jeans while still under the blanket and stood quickly, tying his shirt up so that it was only as long as the beltline of her jeans. Adam laughed and shook his head.

"What?" He reached a hand over and stroked the soft skin of her shoulder where the neck of the shirt was sliding down her arm. She shivered under his touch.

"Nothing." He laughed again and thought to himself that he loved the way she looked in his clothes.

Chloe couldn't believe they had slept in the same bed. She kept her head down as they grabbed their shoes and jackets. She was more than a little embarrassed, but she had been trying to hide a smile as well. They stepped out of the apartment and Adam locked the door.

"Chlo?" She turned to look at him, pulling her dark hair out of her face.

"Hmm?" He looked nervous.

"Can I hold your hand," he asked. Chloe smiled and bit her lip, nodding. He smiled back and reached slowly to twine his fingers with hers. Chloe couldn't keep the smile off her face as they walked to a small diner just off campus. They headed to a large corner booth and as Chloe sat down, Adam slid in next to her. He held her hand underneath the table, playing with her fingers, while they waited for breakfast to arrive. He turned her palm up and began drawing little circles on her skin; she felt entranced by it.

They ate hand in hand, Adam tracing patterns with his thumb across the back of Chloe’s hand. It took twice as long as it should have to eat; not just because she only had one hand available, but because she was so distracted by the little thrills of electricity shooting up her arm from where his skin touched hers.

"God, I've been staring at my plate for the last three minutes!" He laughed and slid some money out of his pocket as he helped her to her feet.

Adam led the way as they walked leisurely toward the quad. Adam held her hand snugly in his the whole way.

"Adam, why me?" He looked at her sideways.

"Why you, what?" She sighed.

"Why me and not Beck? Or any other girl? Why did you choose me?" He stopped, dragging her to a halt next to him, and looked into her eyes. Chloe dropped her gaze and stared at her shoes.

"Why not you? I could tell from the minute you answered the phone that you weren't a Beck clone. You think for yourself, you haven't been with every guy on campus... you aren't horrified by my scars," he said the last part quietly. "You're beautiful, you care about other people- you care about me." He lifted her chin so that she was looking him in the eye.

"You are amazing," he said as he tucked a strand of hair that had fallen loose behind her ear. His fingers rested against her cheek and she could feel her breathing pick up. He ducked his head to look her in the eye again.

"You're completely amazing," he breathed, his voice barely a whisper. Before Chloe recognized what was happening, Adam touched his lips tenderly to hers.

Adam tried to move slowly so that Chloe would know what he was doing, but he had to kiss her. It was almost physically painful- feeling like he did, but not being sure if she felt the same way. The kiss only lasted seconds, but that was all Adam needed to feel electricity skitter through his body. He wanted to deepen the kiss, but didn't want Chloe to think he wanted anything more from her than that one kiss; that would be enough... He looked down at her, but her eyes were distant and she seemed kind of breathless.

"Chloe?" She looked up, but didn't seem to see him at first, then her eyes cleared and she looked into his. Her hand slowly lifted, her fingers touching her lips.

"That was my first kiss," she whispered.

Oh God, he thought. He was shocked into silence for a minute. He’d known she was a virgin, but she'd never been kissed?

Adam didn’t know if he should feel like he'd stolen that from her or if it was okay that he felt like he'd just won the ultimate contest.

"Are you okay?" A wide smile was spreading over her face and he started to feel a little better.

"You were my first kiss," she said with a giggle and looked into his eyes again. She was happy. Adam was grinning like an idiot, but he didn't care. He had given Chloe her first kiss and she was thrilled. It seemed like he knew what the answer to his question would be, but he asked anyway, just to hear her answer.

"Is that okay?" Chloe looked at him, her eyes shining. She tipped her head back and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, before launching herself into his arms. Laughing, Adam took half a step backwards as she crashed into him, wrapping his arms around her. He loved the feel of her against his body.

I could get used to this.

"Are you kidding? Of course it's okay; ohmigod, it was beautiful, Adam." He held her close and kissed the top of her head, laughing. She laid her head just over his heart and he hoped she wouldn't notice how fast it was beating.

"So, is it okay if I ask you to officially be my girlfriend then?" She stepped back and bounced up and down on the balls of her feet like a child, clapping her hands together once. She giggled and clasped her hands over her chest.

"Really?" He pulled her back into his arms. He knew that she shouldn't mean so much to him already, but she did.

Can you really fall in love with someone over the phone?

"Yes, really. Didn't I just finish telling you what you mean to me?" She looked up at him and shook her head. He raised his eyebrows at her.

"You were telling me why you chose me, you never said to what extent," she said, a big snarky smile on her face. He rolled his eyes at her.

"You are the most amazing person I've ever met," he said, and kissed her cheek.

"You're compassionate and beautiful." He kissed her other cheek.

"And you mean more to me than any person ever has before," he whispered as he touched his lips to hers again. Adam was using a great deal of restraint to keep it gentle, but Chloe made it so hard when she put her small hands against his chest. He stepped back before he did something stupid and grabbed her hand, pulling her next to him as he walked back toward his apartment.