I wasn’t expecting it, and it caught me square on the jaw.
Fuck. I lost my balance from the explosion of pain spreading up my face and fell flat on my ass.
“Shit!” Alisa’s eyes went wide with shock. “Dante, I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”
I sat there for a moment, stunned.
“I’m fine,” I said, rubbing my jaw. She stood right next to me, bent over herself, her hands waving helplessly around me.
“Oh my god, Dante,” she groaned and touched my shoulder. “I am so, so, so sorry.”
She was really beating herself up. Way too much. She did land me a solid, but there wasn’t any need for so much guilt.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked again, wincing.
I grinned and gave her a wink. “I am, but can’t guarantee you’ll be once I win this round.”
In a playful move, just to get her to stop feeling so bad, I grabbed her wrist and pulled her down. She squealed in surprise as she tumbled onto the mat beside me. Before she could recover, I had her in a loose hold, my arms around her waist.
“Cheater,” she gasped, trying to break free.
“All’s fair in love and war,” I teased, tightening my grip just enough to keep her in place.
She struggled against me, giggling as she tried to escape, and I rolled us over so she was pinned beneath me, my hands on her wrists, my body hovering just above hers.
“You do know, I’ve kind of won now, haven’t I?”
She burst into loud, open laughter.
“Oh my god,” she giggled, her body shaking beneath mine. “Your face when I hit you—priceless! That was all the victory I needed.”
People don’t lie when they say laughter spreads, and soon, I was laughing too. “I can’t believe you actually got me. I think I’m losing my touch.”
“Or I’m just that good,” she shot back, her eyes dancing with mischief.
“Maybe a little of both,” I conceded, releasing her wrists.
But neither of us moved. The laughter died out, but my eyes were too busy noticing the little flecks of black in the honey of her eyes. My hands were still planted on the mat on either side of her, and she made no effort to slide out from under me.
Everything went still. Quiet. Like the dead of winter.
And I felt aware of every inch of my body,and hers;My thighs pressing up against hers, her arms brushing up against my wrists, her chest heaving beneath mine.
Her tank top had ridden up during our little tussle, and from the corner of my eye, I couldn’t focus on anything but that gorgeous midriff.
I couldn’t stop my eyes from trailing down, away from my eyes, to the heart-shaped rise of those juicy pink lips, which parted just as I landed on them.
And that’s when I heard her let out the tiniest gasp, the kind that came with anticipation, and I knew then that it was too late now to walk away. That distance I’d fought for—forgotten.
“Dante?” she whispered so quietly, I barely even heard her because my name came with her hands reaching for my shoulders.
The time that had paused between us suddenly snapped.
My body came alive… for her.
And when she arched up slightly, with her eyes landing on mine, I knew I needed her then and there.
I leaned down too and closed my eyes. The sights, the sounds, they all went dead, but my heart zipped alive the moment I felt her soft, sweet lips against mine.
