Bet my Life (EDITING!!) #BOOK1

32. Him & I

A/n: Hey guys, the new chapter is up. This chapter is a little steamy. So please beware, if you are not comfortable with it. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. Vote, comment, and share.

Lots of hugs,

Illusionist.

Warning: Slight mature content in this chapter. If you are uncomfortable with it, please skip ahead.

The next few months flew away before we could catch a breath. The winter break was nearing, which meant Christmas was almost here. Heads up, I get particularly crazy around Christmas. That includes, and is not restricted to, running around in red clothes yelling "It's almost Christmas", to everyone I meet and singing Carols on the top of my voice, which tends to become unusually shrill.

For the winter break, my plan was quite hectic. The gang was spending Christmas at my place, and then we were planning on going to San Francisco, where she would spend New Years at Nate and Lily's. Christmas at the Harts' was a huge deal. Each year, our cousins came over, and we took the 'more the merrier' moto quite seriously. Which is why my mom was over the moon when I asked her if I could invite my friends over.

Our Christmas celebrations start from the first of December itself. Its a month-long tradition because frankly, it deserves more. But, 24th is particularly crazy. All the cousins have a talent competition, where Carter and I sabotage everyone else. Our pranks have become a part of the tradition, me being the mastermind behind it. That's not even the best part. The kids try to bribe me so that I can include them in my team, while the adults bribe me to avoid getting humiliated in public. So either way, it's a win-win.

It was the last week of November, and we just got done with our exams. I had secured the internship in New York that Mr Halden was talking about. I had sent him a rough draft of my book and he seemed to really like it. My internship was at the end of the academic year and was for one year. It was a given that Izzie was joining me too, as that was always the plan - to find a job in the same city. The rest of the gang was also looking for jobs in New York, wanting to stay close to each other. Especially Nate, because neither one of us were a fan of long-distance.

"Zoe, are you kidding me?" Izzie was standing with her hands on her hips and an exasperated look on her face.

"Huh?"

"Babe, we leave tomorrow morning, and you're still not done packing. Urg. Move," she demanded, before packing for me. I shot her a sheepish look, which resulted in an eye roll.

"Izz? Are you sure you don't wanna visit your parents during the vacation?" Even though Zach's meeting with Izzie's parents went well, she didn't want to mend her relationship with her parents.

"There's just too much bad blood. A lot of things have happened over the years. Things I can't forgive them for. And the only reason they even liked Zach was that he was rich. They are selfish and greedy bastards, and I can't spend a waking minute with them." I saw a tear fall down her eyes, but she wiped it off before I could say anything.

I hugged her from the side, resting my chin on her shoulder, "You're incredible, Izzie Martin. You're nothing like them, and that is exactly what sets you apart."

She let out a breathy laugh, which came out as a snort. Both of us looked at each other, before guffawing loudly. Within seconds, we were both on the floor, holding our stomach, unable to control our laughter.

"Fuck. I haven't laughed like this in so long," I say, in-between my laughs.

"So true," Izzie respond, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Are you guys okay?"

Both of us let out a sequel and turned towards the intruder.

Or should I say, intruders.

"Couples who live together, really do start to look alike," Nate said in a teasing tone, referring to the 'Crazy Zoe-Izzie Show' that we just put up. Zach was standing near the door, looking at us with a half-amused, half-scared expression.

"That's it. That's our secret. How did you know?" Izzie asked, feigning a shocked look on her face.

Playing along, I pulled her face close to mine, and whispered, "Oh baby. Our secret is out." We stayed like that for a few seconds, before both of us went into a laughing fit again.

Nate groaned loudly, while Zach just looked at us with an open mouth. Zach took Izzie by the hand, and pulled her out of the room yelling, "See you guys later."

I walked towards the door and locked it. I turned to Nate with a sly smile on my face. Biting my lips, I stalked towards him. Resting my hand on his shoulders, I leaned towards his ears on my tippy-toes, and whispered, "You seem to be having a problem." I trail my eyes downwards, "Want me to take care of it?" I ask, batting my lashes.

He groaned loudly and visibly gulped. "Zoey, don't tease me like this."

"Baby, who said I was teasing?"

"Fuck!" He gripped my hair harshly, and crashed my lips with him, causing me to moan against his lips.

He lifted me and I wrapped my legs around his waist. His hands made its way to my bottom, supporting me. Desperately wanting contact with him, I grind against our fully clothed body, eliciting a groan from him.

"Zoey. If you keep doing that, I won't last long," he breathed out. Feeling a rush of excitement flowing through me, I repeated my actions.

Growling, he pulled my shirt, causing it to rip open. I gasped at the feeling, shocking at how much it excited me.

"Too many clothes," I mumbled and took his shirt off. My hands went down, fumbling with his belt buckle. A sigh of frustration escaped from my hands, which resulted in a laugh from Nate. I raised my eyebrows and glared at him, while he tried to cover up his laugh with a cough.

He laid me down on the bed, and removed our remaining clothes, and planted kisses on my neck.

"Ready?" He asked.

Not answering him, I pulled him up and attached our lips in a passion-filled kiss.

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"That was incredible," Nate put his arm under my head, and his other on my waist. Sighing in content, I gave him a light kiss on his chest.

"This just made its way to the 3rd position on my 'top 5 best sex' list." I close my eyes, well aware of the effect it will have.

"And who is above me?" He asked, annoyance evident in his eyes.

"That's for me to know..." I moved a finger down from his chest, "and for you to find out."

"We can easily change the order on the list," he caught my hand, smirked and positioned himself on top of me.

He gave me a look that made me weak to my knees.

"Ready for round two?"

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"So?"

"I think you just moved up by one spot."

He stared at me with an incredulous look on his face.

"Maybe we should give it one more go. After all, practice makes perfect," I winked.

"Oh dear lord, I have created a sex monster! You are insatiable," he laughed and kissed my forehead.

"We are turning into a bunch of horny bunnies." I laugh back, laying my head on the crook of his neck.

"Sex-crazy bunnies," he retorted, stroking my hair, his lips pressed to my hair.

"Je suis Lamoureux de toi."

"What does that mean?" I sleepily ask, exhaustion filling me.

"I'm in love with you."

"I love you, Nate," I say, before letting sleep consume me.