A very long and painful time later, they finally returned to the festivities.
“I love being out with you,” Lizzie said as they walked toward the arts-and-crafts booths.
“I love being with you, too.” He swept her into his arms and kissed her again, knowing he was kissing her way too much but so utterly taken with her, he was unable, and unwilling, to stop. “God, do I love being with you. It should be illegal to taste this good.” He kissed her again. “And feel this good.”
She giggled and, holding his hand, ran toward the tent. “Come on. Otherwise I’m going to make you do things to me you really want to do.”
“Holy Christ. You think that’s a threat?”
They decorated a pumpkin and gave it to a little girl who admired it. Then they ate hot dogs while they walked through more arts-and-crafts tents. All the while, they kissed and touched and teased. It was the most wonderful date Blue had ever been on.
“I need something sweet,” Lizzie said.
“There’s a pie-eating contest in five minutes. Want to try?”
“Really?” She was already dragging him toward the tent. “I love pie. Will you do it with me?”
“Sure, but you can’t possibly eat more pie than me. I’m twice your size.”
“Watch me,” she said with a challenging stare.
Donning plastic bibs, they joined a long table full of hungry spoon-yielding contestants.
“I’m so going to beat you,” Lizzie declared. “Even if I don’t beat everyone else, I’m still going to eat more pie than you.”
Blue laughed. “I could eat you under the table.”
She rolled her eyes. “Promises, promises.”
The whistle sounded, signaling the start of the contest, and while Lizzie gobbled down blueberry pie, Blue tried to pull his slack jaw up from the table.
“Hardly fair,” he said, before digging in.
“I have a Lick-It list, too. If you’re lucky, maybe you can help me work through it.” She shoved more pie in her mouth.
“Lick-It list?” His fork paused on the way to his mouth. “Is that…?”
“Things I’d like to lick off a man’s body.” She licked her lips and gobbled down more pie. “And things I’d like to have licked off mine.”
“Holy…” The dichotomy of the heat in her words and the flicker of innocence in her eyes made his body fully alert again. “I think I found the perfect woman.”
They finished their first pies at almost the same time. Lizzie leaned closer to Blue as they started on their second. She lifted the spoon to her mouth and made a seductive show of licking the sweet filling off of it.
The hell with the contest.
He pushed his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her into a blueberry kiss, which he intensified until he drew a lusty moan from her lungs and left her breathless. “Paybacks are hell.” He finished his second pie slowly, savoring every bite as she recovered from their scorching-hot kiss.
When the whistle signaled the end of the contest, he dipped his finger into the sugary blueberry and brought it to her lips. “I won’t leave you hanging, babe.”
She swirled her tongue around his finger, then drew his finger into her mouth and sucked it like she was sucking the very aroused part of him below his waist.
“No, but I will,” she said as she rose from her seat. “That’ll teach you not to cheat.”
“Cheat?” He scooped her into his arms as she giggled and squirmed. “You just got even hotter, but be warned. Second-time-around paybacks are even worse.”
“I’m so looking forward to it.”
He kissed her again before setting her feet back on the ground. “I love that you’re not bashful about eating like most girls are, and I love that you challenge me back with the naughty stuff.”
“I think you’ll find I’m nothing like most girls.”
He pulled her against him again. “Sweetheart, I’ve known that since the day I met you.”
“I have no idea how. I’m nothing special.” She gazed up at him with the most innocent expression of disbelief in her eyes, and his chest tightened.
“How did I get lucky enough for you to finally agree to go out with me? You’re not just special, Lizzie. You’re unique in every way. You make rules about kissing, and sometimes you catch yourself enjoying us too much, and I see you trying to pull away, but I can feel how much you don’t want to. You have a personality that lights up a room. You’re smart and funny and sexy as hell. How can you think you’re nothing special? I’ve never met a woman like you.”
She wrinkled her brow. “You can feel when I’m enjoying myself too much?”
“Not today, but I did last night and this morning. I thought you were just getting used to giving in to your emotions, the same way I was.”