Young Love Dies Hard: The Young Brothers, Book 1 by Nikki Lane (old books to read txt) 📗

he serious? I’d done it in a few different places—the car, the bathroom of someone’s house at a party, the basement laundry room of my apartment complex. But never the library. If I had known that was a thing, I would have visited it more often.

I shook my head to clear my train of thought. How did Jacob know how to throw me off my game so easily?

I wrote a message and slid the notebook back.

Stop. Some of us need to study!

I heard the notebook slide over one more time, but I refused to acknowledge it. Jacob cleared his throat, but I ignored him, all the while rereading the same fucking sentence over and over. Picturing Jacob and me going at it in some dark corner of the library was so much more interesting.

Jacob gave the throat clearing technique one more try. When I still wasn’t cooperating, he dealt a firm nudge with his foot under the table. My head shot up to give him a dissatisfied look. He gestured toward the notebook with his pen.

Go out on a date with me?

I double blinked. And then I blinked a few more times. A date? With me? With Jacob? Huh?

I thwacked my pen against my book, gaining a few more annoyed stares from our neighbors. I looked to Jacob and shook my head. He frowned and retrieved the notebook, only to write a new message and pass it back to me.

Why not?

I grabbed the notebook and wrote a response, feeling a little like I was back in eighth grade.

Because I don’t date.

I passed the notebook back to him, assuming it would be the end of discussion. But it wasn’t. Jacob wrote another message and slid the notebook back my way.

Please? One date. Let me pop your dating cherry.

My eyes widened, and a rush a blood flooded my cheeks. I scooted back my chair, the sound of wood grinding on wood echoing through the cavernous space. I grabbed my books and haphazardly shoved them back into my bag and tried to make a dash for the door. I didn’t look back, but I heard the sound of Jacob get up from his chair, too.

“Maeve,” he called out to me.

I wound through the aisles of books, trying to find the stairs to get back to the first level. I didn’t want to waste time waiting for the elevator. But I didn’t spend much time in this library, and it was like a fucking labyrinth. The more I walked through, the more I realized I didn’t have a clue where I was going. A sign could have been helpful.

“Maeve, wait,” Jacob called, ignoring all laws of the library as he tried to catch up with me.

I felt him tug on my arm as he pulled me between two secluded aisles. He steadied my body in his arms as my back pressed up against the hard spines of books.

I tried to take a few steadying breaths, refusing to look at him.

“Maeve, what’s the matter? What did I say wrong?”

When I finally met his face, his eyes were narrowed and his brow furrowed.

“Nothing, Jacob. Just please, let me go.”

“No,” he said, holding my hands steady. “Not until you tell me why you won’t go out with me.”

“I told you. I—”

“Yeah, I know. You don’t date. But that’s not a good enough answer for me.”

I tore my eyes away from him and focused on the dingy blue carpeting.

“Look at me, Maeve.” He used his hand to gently turn my face. “Why won’t you look at me?”

A burn slivered through my gut. How could I make him understand? The fingers of his other hand entwined with mine. My body had no choice but to react to his touch.

“I’m sorry,” I murmured. “I don’t have any other answer for you.”

I’d hoped that Jacob would make it easy for me to walk away. I should have known better than to underestimate the influence he had on me. It worked its magic even when we were kids.

“One date, Maeve. That’s all I’m asking. Not marriage. Not even for a second date.”

His hazel eyes focused on me, making me squirm, as I stood trapped between a wall of books and Jacob’s body. The intoxicating aroma of Jacob’s cologne overshadowed the smell of the worn leather and paper.

One date. What could it hurt? As long as his expectations were low, I think I could handle it.

“Okay,” I whispered. “One date.”

How could I have made myself anymore clear? I wasn’t the dating kind. But I guessed he was going to have to learn that the hard way. I’d take a chance and call his bluff. I just hoped he wouldn’t be too disappointed when it turned out that I was right all along.

Jacob smiled. “Great.” He readjusted his glasses with his free hand and kept a steady gaze on me.

“Jacob?” I said, almost in a daze as he leaned in closer to my face.

“Yes?” I could feel the warmth of his breath hit my skin.

“What are you doing?” My chest heaved, and I struggled with my shallow breathing.

He pressed his frame closer to me, melting his body against mine.

“What does it look like I’m doing?”

The scruff of his light beard brushed against my skin as he kissed my cheek. He pulled back. “I’m kissing you.” And then kissed the other cheek.

I closed my eyes, feeling the goosebumps flutter across my skin as his lips made their way down my jawline.

“We can’t do this,” I forced myself to say.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “Nobody uses this part of the library.”

It wasn’t what I meant, but it didn’t matter. He set his lips on mine, and it was all it took to shut me up. One hand rested on my hip while the other trailed up my torso to my chest. I parted my lips and let Jacob’s tongue work his way inside my mouth. He exhaled hard into me and gently ran his hand over my breasts. My body ached against his touch. I became so