CHAPTER 39: COPS

I was taken aback by how sensitive Kent could be. I had always assumed that Kent disliked people getting close to him or touching him, and I thought he was merely tolerating my presence because he didn't like me at all.

As we lay in his dimly lit bedroom, I began to realize that the brusque manner in which he spoke to me wasn't necessarily a reflection of his feelings toward me. It was just his way, but deep down, he did care to some extent. If he genuinely disliked me, he wouldn't have shared stories about Dartmouth or football, driven me to work, assisted me in getting back at Piper, or been here with me right now.

I struggled to recall the last time I had been in bed with another guy, and it had been years since I had been this physically close to someone else. The way I felt around Kent was unlike anything I had ever experienced before, and most of the time, I couldn't determine whether that was a positive or negative thing.

The soothing circles he was tracing on my back had an