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“Is it going to be weird now?” he asked, chewing his lower lip between his teeth. “Are you sorry?”

“I’m not sorry,” I told him firmly. “Maybe I should be, but I’m not.”

“Good,” he said, visibly relaxing. “Because I wanted to ask you to come to the team’s Halloween party with me tomorrow after the game.”

“With you? Like…a date?” I asked cautiously.

“Yeah, actually,” he said, nodding. “I mean, we don’t have to hold hands or anything, but I want you there with me. Say you’ll come.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I said. “Trevor, you know that I’m still—”

“I know that in a couple years you’re going to strap on a habit and give up all the good stuff that most of us take for granted,” he said. “But before you do, you still have a life to live. And I’d like to be there when you do…for at least a little while.”

“Nuns wear habits,” I said, lost as to how to respond to the rest of it.

“I know.” He grinned then wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me into his chest. “It’s a party, Princess. Not a marriage proposal. Just say yes.”

“Yes,” I said. “But no costumes.”

“I’ll pick you up after the game,” he said before leaning forward and kissing me gently. “And I’ll bring your costume.”

“No princess shit,” I insisted firmly.

“You’re my princess, no one else’s.” He gave me a wink then released me and grabbed his bag, slinging it over his shoulder and whistling as he walked out the door.

Oh my God. I was in so much trouble.

****

I managed to make it through the rest of my classes and even pay attention in most of them, which was a welcome change from the previous couple of weeks.

Honestly, I hadn’t even realized how much of my brain was being taken up with thoughts of Trevor, until I was finally able to relax into the knowledge that we’d taken another step toward damnation, so we may as well go all the way while I had the chance.

It was strange to think that Monsignor O’Shea had really been the one to give me permission to let go. Not that he probably meant I should blow Trevor Hix, but his reminder that I wasn’t a priest yet held a hell of a lot more weight than anyone else’s.

When I got back to the apartment after classes were over, I wasn’t really surprised to see my sister sitting on the sofa, staring at the door like a golden retriever waiting for its owner to return.

“Start talking,” she demanded before I’d even had time to close the door behind myself.

“Today was great, thanks,” I said, dropping my bag onto a chair and heading into the kitchen for a bottle of water. “How was your day?”

“Interesting,” she said. “It started with me seeing my brother on top of the guy who bullied the shit out of him in high school.”

“Okay.” I slammed the fridge closed and walked back out to face her. “This is crazy. You were the one that was convinced everything that happened between Trevor and me was because of some fanfiction fantasy that you had rolling around in your head. So I take one step, one step, toward seeing if maybe you were right. If maybe there is something there, and now you’re pissed at me?”

“I’m not mad at you for boning him,” she insisted.

“We didn’t…Jesus fuck, Caitlyn.” I shook my head. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I didn’t sleep with him. I just…slept with him.” And sucked his dick, but that seemed like a little too much information for this conversation.

“I’m worried about you,” she said. “Yeah, I thought there was some gross sexual tension. But I thought you’d bang it out and be done with each other. Now he’s staying over? You’re spending all this time with him? I wanted you to have fun, Andy. Not fall in love with him.”

“Whoa! Who the fuck said anything about love? I’m tutoring him. And…whatever else we may or may not be doing. He’s not my fucking boyfriend, Caitlyn.” I blew out a sigh. “I’m still going to be a priest, remember? I’m not looking for some bullshit fairy tale here.”

“I don’t think you know what you’re looking for,” she said. “I think you’ve never known. You just stumble through life, ambling toward some future that isn’t—” she shut her mouth so abruptly I actually heard her teeth clack together.

“Isn’t what?” I asked her coldly.

“Forget it. We’re off topic.”