“What are you thinking about?” he asks me.
“You,” I admit, quietly.
“Yeah?”
I nod.
“What about me?” he murmurs.
Oh, where do I start? “I’m glad we went out,” I tell him. “I had a really nice time.”
Initially, I welcomed Declan’s invitation to dinner as a distraction from my workload and the loneliness that plagues my life. Now, I welcome only Curran: his deep voice, his hearty laugh, and his way with words. He has a way of stirring me up and breaking through the monotony and solitude of my existence, something I didn’t think was possible.
He cocks his head, taking me in. I wonder what he sees when he looks at me, but I don’t dare ask. I just hope it’s good. After all, he’s so…
He pushes off the wall and prowls forward, reaching for me and cupping my face with his large hands. His fingers thread through my hair, his light blue eyes so intense, my breath lodges in my throat and balls into a lump.
He leans in, closing his eyes. “What are you doing?” I stammer.
He pauses, then opens his eyes. “Ah, trying to kiss you.”
“On the lips?”
“I could do the forehead if you want,” he offers, slowly. “But it’s kind of not the same.”
“What does this mean?” I ask, barely able to spit the words out.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, what are you trying to do here?”
“I told you, kiss you.” He drops his hands away. “I thought we were having a moment. But I gotta tell you, Tess. You’re kind of ruining it for me.”
“Um.” I look around, my palms unusually sweaty. “Okay.”
“Okay, what?”
I let out a breath. “Okay, you can kiss me.”
I rub my palms against my coat and close the space between us. You can do this, I tell myself. And you know you want to. I lift my chin, close my eyes, and wait.
Until Curran’s laughter jolts my eyes open.
My face heats, which only makes him crack up harder. “You really know how to kill a moment. You know that?” he manages between bouts of laughter.
My shoulders slump as I admit defeat. He’s right. I took a perfectly sweet moment and ruined it. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want this moment to happen, or that I’m ready to let it go. “Believe it or not, I’m trying here,” I tell him.
He leans back on his heels and crosses his arms, a big grin fixed on his face. “Let me take you back to college for a second. Think back to the night we went back to your sorority house.” He laughs when I blush yet again. “Before I ended up tied to your bed. Were you nervous?”
“Yes, I—no.” My hands slap at my sides. “A little,” I admit. “Mostly I was just having fun.”
Curran steps forward, his arm immediately claiming my waist while the knuckles of his free hand brush my cheek. “So just have fun,” he whispers.
I’m ready to tell him I’m not sure how, but his kiss immediately silences me.
At first, I think he’ll take his time, sweep his lips softly and romantically against mine, the same way he kissed my hand. I also think he’ll move his tongue to gently prod until I invite him in.
But I’m wrong.
Way wrong.
Good God.
Curran’s open mouth conquers mine, his lips fastening firmly and his tongue probing and teasing so that I easily surrender to the invasion. The Contessa Newart who’s so awkward and dorky gets kicked to the curb, succumbing to the Tess Newart who the cute guy wants, and needs, and, and— Holy shit.
I moan, my arms curling around his neck and drawing him closer. I’m briefly aware of my coat being yanked open, just as I’m aware that I don’t give a damn. Curran swears as he comes up for air before eagerly returning for more. He wants me. I know it by the possessive claim of his lips and the way his hands travel the length of my body.