I made sure Ferdinand saw me kissing Kitten next to the school. I didn't do it out of jealousy because the cockroach is no threat. I didn't kiss her to show everyone I'm a possessive asshole cause I'm not.

Leah isn't my property. She's her own person, but that doesn't mean Fer can mess with her. I wanted to send him a message — I have her back. If he tries to bully her, he'll regret it.

It's early when I make it to the shop. I have a bunch of things to do, but my mind's restless. I have a bad feeling, like when something shitty is about to happen, but you ignore your intuition, hoping your overactive imagination's playing tricks on you.

Pops is out of town. I start working on the first bike as soon as I open the business and don't stop until the Harley is fixed, not even for a smoke. I smile to myself when I realize I haven't smoked today at all, too distracted by thoughts about Kitten.

"Hello there, handsome."

The familiar voice makes me grin, and my hazel eyes meet Mom's green ones.

"Hey, Mom. What a nice surprise."

She walks up and kisses my cheek. "I don't have morning classes today. Are you too busy?"

"I can take a short break. Would you like a drink?"

Mom smiles. "Coffee, if you have some. I didn't get much sleep last night."

I remember she had a date with Pops and grin as I approach the coffee machine to make our drinks. "Pops didn't, either. Are Jimmy and I gonna have a little brother or sister?"

"That ship's sailed." Mom laughs. "We have enough on our plate with our two sons, but I'll be a good grandmother when the time comes."

"Don't count on me for that. Jimmy, on the other hand..."

Mom sighs. "Jimmy's too busy for girlfriends. By the way, how's Leah?"

"Leah's good," I say and can't help smiling.

"So, you're dating."

I finish making my mom's coffee and hand her a cup. "Yeah, we are."

"That makes me so happy!" Mom squeezes me in a tight hug. "She's the kind of girl you need."

"And what kind of girl do I need, pray tell?"

"One who'd get you but wouldn't be afraid of putting you in your place. Leah's shy, but there's more to her."

"You're probably right. Kitten has claws; she's just scared to use them."

Mom winks at me. "See? Mothers are hardly ever wrong. Since we're talking about it, why don't you bring Leah to one of our family dinners so we can get to know her?"

"You're gonna scare her off." I laugh, sipping my coffee.

Mom ruffles my hair. "I won't. I hope Jimmy can come, too."

"Just not this weekend. Leah's barely seen anything out of this town. I might take her somewhere for the day."

"Good boy. Well, time to head back to work. Say hi to your girl."

I chuckle and kiss Mom's cheek. "Will do."

After she leaves, I fix another bike, and then three more. I stop to eat a sandwich and continue working until the sound of footsteps makes me halt.

"'Sup," Mac says, strolling in.

"Hey, dude. I thought you were busy at the gym," I say, and the ugly sensation from earlier is inexplicably back. It hits me full force when Mac sits on the bench and nods toward it for me to join him.

"What happened?" I ask.

Mac sighs. "I stopped by our place to get some papers I'd forgotten."

"And?"

"And Leah was there with Annie."

That gets my attention. "Didn't they go shopping?"

"They did, but they went home because of what Bella did."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

Mac scrunches up his brows. "I eavesdropped because they were talking about you. Bella cornered Leah and informed her about your sexual preferences, said she was your first, and that you saw her after our meetup and begged her to let you fuck her. Is that true?"

My mouth goes dry. I try to swallow and say, "What? Of course not. I went to confront her about the bullshit with Ferdinand at the Temple. Dakota was with me cause I was too buzzed to drive my bike. Did that bitch tell Leah that?"

Mac nods. "That and more. That you like her rack and always go back to her. Leah was in tears, and Annie was comforting her."

My heart squeezes. I stare at Mac, and self-loathing breaks through my usual indifference. "I should've listened to Dakota, damn it. She warned me, and I was an idiot. Fuck. I shouldn't have gone to see Bella at all."

"I told you she caught feelings. Why else would she let you fuck her without asking where you'd been and who you'd been with? No chick does that unless she has no self-respect or is in love."

"I can't believe she stooped so low."

Mac rolls his eyes. "Yeah, cause we all grew up here and all that shit. Well, she did, and I wanted to give you a heads up in case your girl's pissed, and you have no clue why."

I jump to my feet and rush to the sink to wash my hands. "I need to talk to her."

Mac scratches his head. "Maybe you should let her cool off?"

"To make her hate me and doubt herself more while she does? No, thanks."

I don't tell him that Leah and I made out, and I stopped, afraid to push, but if Kitten believes Bella's words, she'll think I didn't want her.

Mac sends a text and then looks at me. "They're still at our place. Let's go."

Leah and Annie are in the kitchen when we enter Mac's house. Kitten's head snaps up at the sound of my footsteps, and her eyes widen. Wiping the moisture off her cheeks, she stares at the tea mug in her hands.

"Give us a minute, please," I say to Annie, who glances at Leah and exits the kitchen after Kitten tells her it's okay.

"We need to talk," I say.

Leah sniffles. "You know."

"Mac heard. Don't be mad at him for telling me. He's my best friend, and I'm glad he did. My house is empty. We can talk there."

Kitten shakes her head. "I'd rather not. We can go to my place; Mom's already left for work."

The misery etched into her expression saddens and enrages me. I hate Bella for trying to mess with my relationship. My past came back to bite me in the ass, and there ain't much I can do except be honest.

Leah makes sure there's enough distance between us. It hurts me in a weird way.

We ride to her house, and she goes to her room, asking me to follow her there with a nod.

Kitten and I sit on her bed side by side. Despite her resistance, I make her lie and do the same next to her.

"Listen to me. Please. If after what I say you don't wanna see me anymore, I'll leave you alone. Okay?"

"It can't be worse than what I'd heard," Leah whispers. A lone tear slides down her cheek, and I brush it away, hating the sight of Kitten crying.

"I did go to her house. With Dakota," I add when Leah cries harder. "Bella was with Ferdinand at the Temple, and I'm sure he has some sick plan in mind cause he was the one who vandalized your locker, and I punched his smug face and threatened to do more than that if he didn't leave you alone."

"He did that? But why?" Kitten whispers.

I sigh. She's so damn naïve. It would've been adorable hadn't Bella and Fer used it to hurt Leah.

"Cause you dumped him. And Bella said shit to you because I rejected her, and she might have feelings for me. I slept with her after I met you, but only once. You and I weren't together, and you hated my guts back then.

"And yes, Kitten, she was my first. We were sixteen, I was horny, and she had a certain reputation. I wanted to fuck, and I did it with her because she wasn't a stranger, and I wasn't her first guy.

"Then, I moved away with my mom, and although I'm not proud of it, I had a rule of never sleeping with the same chick twice. I partied a lot and went to bed with a different girl every chance I could for the two years I lived in the city. When your mind's screwed, you need an escape, and I found it in sex.

"And yes, I slept with Bella when I visited my dad because I didn't have to sweet-talk her, buy her drinks, or pretend I was interested in something other than a quick, meaningless, dirty fuck. She never asked questions. It was as easy as throwing a stone at her window and fucking her in a couple of minutes.

"But guess what? You somehow changed all of it for me. You were so different that I was baffled. Mindless fucking lost its appeal. I started to want conversations, dates, bucket lists, watching movies, and spending time together with you. I never did that with any girl. I lied to them and invented a different name for myself each time I needed a new chick to screw. I was Logan and Matt and Tom, but with you, I'm fucking Brian O'Brien. I've been from the start.

"There's something else. Yes, I want you. I've had blue balls for weeks, and the boy's desperate each time I'm near you."

I grip Leah's hand and put it on the front of my jeans. "I want you. Not Bella. You and only you because I like you. You're special to me. I stopped when we were kissing because those kisses meant more to me than almost three years of fucking. I didn't want to rush because I was trying to do right by you and be the guy who deserved you a little. I wanted the build-up and growing closer. I want a damn relationship for the first time. I really do."

I look into Leah's eyes, cupping her wet cheek. "As much as it'd hurt me to let you go, I'll understand if you're disgusted by my past. I wasn't the best of guys, Kitten. I'm not gonna sugarcoat stuff and lie to you. You're a good, innocent girl who didn't deserve what Bella said, and neither did you deserve how I treated you in the beginning. You call the shots. If you want to end it, I'll be a grownup about it, but if you don't, I'll try to be worthy of you. We'd be good together because you're so damn good for me."

I finish speaking. Leah says nothing, and it kills me.

But then, she smiles just barely and snuggles into my chest, and I feel like crying the way I did only a few times in my life.