Read Online Nothing More by Anna Todd - Free Book Online

reason that I don’t understand but I don’t think I want to inquire too deeply about. The way she spun for him . . .
    Dakota looks toward the door and sighs again. I’ve never heard a person sigh so much in my life. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine. I just needed to vent, I guess.”
    That’s not enough for me.
    â€œYou aren’t fine, Baby Beans,” I say, instinctively using her old nickname. Her wince quickly shifts to a shy smile and I sit back and let the familiarity of us take over. She’s softening now, finally, and it makes me feel less awkward around her.
    â€œReally?” Dakota’s chair drags against the floor as she moves it closer to mine. “That was a cheap shot.”
    I smile, staying silent and shaking my head. I didn’t use the name in order to gain some advantage. I had called her that by accident one day—I honestly have no idea why—and it just stuck. She melted then, and she’s melting now. It just slipped out without me thinking, but I can’t say that I’m not happy when she leans her head against my arm, wrapping her hand around it. The silly, accidental nickname has always had the same effect on her. I’ve always loved it.
    â€œYou’re so solid now,” she says, squeezing my biceps. “When did that happen?”
    I’ve been working out more, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want her to notice, but now that she has noticed, together with her nearness, it makes me slightly shy.
    Dakota’s hands run up and down my arm and I gently brush her curly hair away from my face.
    â€œI don’t know,” I finally respond, my voice sounding much softer than I intended. Her fingers are still playing at my skin, tracing phantom shapes onto it, making goose bumps rise. “I’ve been running a lot and my building has a gym. I don’t use it often, honestly, but I run almost every day.”
    It feels so good to be touched. I had forgotten just how good it feels to have simple companionship, let alone actually feeling the warmth of another person. The image of Nora’s nails raking down my stomach flashes through my mind and I shiver. Dakota’s touch is different, softer. She knows just how to touch me, what I’m used to. Nora’s touch sent waves through me; this touch is calming.
    Why am I thinking about Nora?
    Dakota continues to caress me while I try to push Nora from my head.
    I feel slightly embarrassed by her attention, but at the same time, it feels really good to have my hard work noticed. I’ve changed my entire body over the last two years, and I’m glad she seems to appreciate it. She was always the prettier one in our relationship, and maybe my new physique will make her want to touch me more, maybe even spend more time with me.
    It’s a shallow, desperate thought, but it’s all I’ve got right now when it comes to holding on to Dakota.
    She’s even more beautiful now than she used to be, and I imagine she will continue to grow more and more beautiful as she transforms into a woman. We used to plan becoming adults together. We would have two kids, she said, even though I kind of wanted four. The world felt so different then, and this idea that we could grow up to be anything we wanted seemed so tangible. When you’re submerged in a small town in the Midwest, bright lights and big cities seem so farfetched to most—but they didn’t to Dakota.
    She always wanted more. Her mom was an aspiring actress who moved to Chicago to get into a theater production and thereby become a massive star. It never happened; the city stole her soul and she became addicted to the late nights and the things that keep you awake to enjoy them. She never managed to get out, and Dakota has always been determined to do what her mom couldn’t: make it.
    She leans closer. Her hair tickles my nose and I sink farther back into the