Kayden takes my hand and we both stand up. He hovers over me and backs me up against the wall. The palm of his hand grips my chin and his face edges closer, so close I can feel his breath hitting my lips with every exhale he releases.
“Before we walk out of this bathroom and I become Richard again, can I say something to you as Kayden?” he asks. His eyes are intense, zoned in on me, and I have a strong feeling that if he were to look away I would crumble into nothingness.
“Yes,” I mutter, almost breathless by his touch.
“You’re more woman than Danny could ever have handled.” His thumb brushes against my lips, parting them. “You’re more of a sister than Lisa deserves. Your parents are talented as hell in movies, but they’re blind to the truth of real life.” My heart picks up speed as time somehow stops completely. He inches closer and kisses my falling tears away. “And I am one lucky bastard to be your made-up boyfriend.”
I don’t know what to say, so I smile like a goof ball, feeling my stomach fill with all kinds of wonder. When words come to mind, I let them fly from my mouth. “You give the best pushed-up-against-a-wall pep talks.”
“Hey, do you see that?” he whispers, and I cannot help but take in every syllable he speaks, every word he somehow sings.
“See what?”
He looks up and points right above us. “The invisible mistletoe hanging above us.”
My cheeks heat up and my eyes move to the invisible mistletoe of his imagination. I love his imagination. “Well, look at that.”
“You know legend says it’s bad luck if two people stand under the invisible mistletoe and don’t kiss.”
“How much bad luck are we talking?” I smirk, feeling his hand tighten around my back.
“Well, I can’t say exactly. It’s different with each person. But the last time, a guy I work with who didn’t kiss under the invisible mistletoe grew an extra finger and lost a toe. No lie.”
The serious look on his face makes me want to crack up laughing, but the way his fingers are massaging my back makes me want to do everything in my power to avoid the bad luck. “Well, we wouldn’t want that, now would we?”
“I guess not…” He takes one finger and runs it up and down the side of my neck, making me sigh softly, wanting the invisible mistletoe to travel with us everywhere we go.
When his lips slowly discover mine and my fingers run through his hair, my mind starts begging for more than his soft kisses. He presses his hips against mine, pinning me to the wall, and his hands become entangled in my locks as he deepens the kiss. I feel all of him against me, almost forgetting where he begins and I end. His tongue slowly slides into my mouth and I sigh with ecstasy, feeling his warm hands wrapping around the edge of my shirt, slowly pulling it up. When he pulls it all the way off of my body, he stares me in the eyes and moves my hair behind my ears.
“I hate how they make you doubt how amazing you are,” he breathes against my lips. I watch as he gets down on his knees and moves my arms to the sides of my body. Swiftly I try to move them back to cover my stomach, but his green eyes demand that I lose this battle. “Eyes closed.” His words are commanding; but, it sounds more like a request than an order. And, I abide.
My other senses become fully aware of all of my surroundings while my eyes are closed. I can hear my family chattering from the dining room, and I pick up on the sound of the wind from outside hitting against the house. My lips part and I can taste the air being sucked into my lungs. I smell the shampoo in his hair—coconut. And I feel him. His hands are placed on my bare sides and his forehead is resting against my stomach.
I relax all of the muscles in my body the moment I experience his lips kissing around my belly button. My mind shuts down, and I get rid of all of the other senses that are no longer of importance. I commit to Kayden’s touch. His fingers effortlessly massage my sides. His tongue caresses my skin for a split second before taking refuge back in his mouth. His soft lips deliver countless shivers. My hips choose to motion toward his lips, but he doesn’t take advantage of their brainless actions. His hands stay on my hips as he rises to his feet, and I can tell he’s hovering over me again. I just don’t know if I currently have the strength to witness him before me yet.
“You’re perfect,” he says before slipping me a gentle kiss. His voice is confident that he’s telling me a fact, not simply his opinion. “Okay?”
I open my eyes to see him reach for my shirt, which he places back on my body. He turns away and he doesn’t look back at me. He just opens the bathroom door and disappears.
He thinks I’m perfect.
I smile, because he wasn’t Richard—he was Kayden.
And it wasn’t an act.