Goosebumps raced up my arms when I thought of the night Cash had held me on the makeshift dance floor. Everything about it had felt right. So right, that all I could dream about lately was dancing with my neighbor-turned-boyfriend.
I tucked my notebook filled with songs into the front pocket of my gig bag, zipped my guitar inside, and released a long, satisfied breath. A fulfilled sigh. One that let me know I’d used up all my creative juices for the day and had earned a long and cozy sleep later on during this stormy night.
I stood the gig bag in the corner and then jumped at a knock at my door. It couldn’t be Cash already; it wasn’t even ten o’clock. He was a single man, not a cranky two-year-old who needed an early bedtime. I wrapped my curls into a messy bun at the nape of my neck and cracked open the door. “What are you doing here?”
“It’s good to see you, too,” Cash said, moving toward the door like he expected me to open it wide enough for him to send Moose inside.
I opened it a tad more but put my hand on his chest to stop him in his tracks. “I mean it. Why are you here so early?”
“I told you I’d bring him over before I went to bed. It’s nine-thirty.”
“Who goes to bed at nine-thirty?”
“I do when I have to get up at three-thirty for work.”
“Oh, right.” My hand fell to my side, and I made room for him and Moose to step inside just as a clap of thunder rumbled through the air. Moose scurried in and wedged himself between my futon and the wall. “You weren’t kidding about him and thunder.”
Cash ran his fingers through his hair, and I couldn’t ignore the way his bicep flexed in his snug tee. “Yeah, he’s going to need a lot of extra TLC tonight. Thanks for taking him. I can’t imagine the guy being all alone when I leave for work, but someone had to cover for our sous-chef this morning, and I drew the short straw.”
I nodded. Not too sure what comfort I could be to the poor dog, but glad that Moose wouldn’t be by himself. “Try not to be too jealous of Moose and me snuggling while you’re at work.”
Something hungry flashed in Cash’s eyes, and he stepped close, invading my space in his usual sizzling way. He turned on his irresistible charm, and it was time for me to come clean to myself. I was most definitelynot immuneto this man’s wiles.
His eyes roved over every inch of me, heating the air around us. He reached out to tuck one of my wayward curls behind my ears, his fingertips brushing across my cheeks and leaving trails of fire across my skin. A wild spark of electricity shot through my body, chased by a faint shiver following in its wake. Cash tilted his head like all the hot guys in the movies do just before they’re about to kiss a woman until she goes weak in the knees.
He leaned closer, his gaze never releasing mine and ran his tongue along his lower lip. His hungry eyes sparkled in that teasing way of his that made my stomach twist into delicious knots, waiting for him to make his move and kiss me already!
“Thanks for taking him in tonight.” He muttered the words so close to my face that I could feel the heat of his breath on my lips. I swallowed hard. “Being alone is no fun at all.” His chest swelled with a deep breath, and he inched closer to me before winking and starting to pull away.
“Oh, no you don’t. Not this time!” I reached up and cupped the back of his neck with my hands and pulled his head toward me, putting his lips right where they belonged—against mine. My lids fluttered shut as his body jolted. He stiffened for a micro-second before something primal rumbled deep in his throat and he wrapped his arms around me. He straightened his back, lifting me off my feet and spinning me around.
My legs dangled as he took a few aimless steps while exploring my lips with a fiery passion I’d never known before. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I was pretty sure it had nothing to do with the lightning show going on outside.
My hands trailed over the bulges of his solid arms as he slowly lowered my feet to the floor. What had started as an explosion of passion settled into something tender and soft. With one hand, he entwined his fingers in my hair as his lips wandered down my neck. “What took you so long?” He muttered the words between his panted breaths, his other hand running down my side until it settled in the curve of my waist.
My breath caught in my chest when his lips brushed my ear. “What are you talking about?” I whispered, hardly able to focus on the words coming out of my mouth.
He pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. “It wouldn’t be very chivalrous of me to twist your arm into dating me and then press you for a kiss, now would it? No. The first kiss had to be your choice. Lord knows, I’ve done my best to tempt you plenty of times.”
My jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me right now? That’s what all this teasing has been? You’ve been tempting me to kiss you?” A wide grin spread across my face as I shook my head in disbelief.
“You can’t blame a guy for trying.” He rested his hands on my hips and pulled my body even closer to his. My cheeks heated when the teasing look in his eyes was replaced by something that looked a whole lot like… love. “You might have taken a while to come around, but you were worth the wait.”
When I looked into Cash’s eyes, all my insecurities faded away. I’d never felt so safe in any relationship in my life. Cash saw me—the real me—and I believed he liked what he saw.
Relaxing into his embrace, I laid my head on his chest, adoring every beat of his heart as it thrummed in my ear. I slid my arms around him and splayed my hands on his broad back. This was right—wewere right.
I could have stood like that for the rest of the night, but Cash heaved a heavy sigh. “You’ve kept me up past my bedtime.” He smiled. “I’d better go home and get some sleep.”
I nodded, my head still spinning from our kiss.
He opened the door and took a step outside before looking back at me over his shoulder. “A man could get used to bedtime kisses like that.” The corner of his mouth curved into a smile, and then he closed the door behind him.
I was alone, standing in a haze—a sweet haze where the past five minutes replayed on a never-ending loop in my mind. And every time I got to the part where his arms tightened around me, heat flared in my chest.
I wasn’t dating my neighbor as a means to an end anymore. I’d fallen head-over-heels in love with him, and there was no coming back from it. I pressed my back against the door, imagining the man on the other side.
Thunder boomed outside, long and rumbling, rattling every stick of furniture in my apartment. My one and only table lamp crashed to the floor as Moose jammed his body under the side table at the end of my futon, knocking it off kilter.
