“Then I want to…dance with you, a lot. You’re not leaving for four months, two weeks and one day. I’m going to ask you to some sort of event that has dancing every single week until you leave. And at some point, you’re going to forget that you don’t think we should dance naked.”
Oh god, he had a countdown to when he thought she was leaving. She was doomed in the most delicious way. “That’s not dancing, that’s sex.”
He pressed into her, slowly and deliberately, and lowered his head, stopping just a hair’s breadth away from her mouth. His eyes were dancing, the cocky bastard.
“Why are you so confident this is going to work?”
“Because we’re made for each other, Liv. I can survive without you, but it won’t be living. That’s powerful motivation that we didn’t have the first time round. If you give us another chance, we’re going to get it right. I’m going to get it right.”
Her breath caught in her throat. “You keep saying that.”
“Does it feel like a lie?” His hands dusted her hips, close enough for her to feel the heat radiating against her body.
She shook her head slowly. “I know you’re going to try.”
“I’m going to succeed.”
Her breath caught in her throat. “Rafe, I need to tell you something.”
He stilled around her, a frozen mountain of a man. “Yeah?”
“I might not be moving in March.”
“Oh?”
Why was she dragging this out? Because he’d be happy? Because she wasn’t sure she was happy? Rip off the bandage. The moral of their divorce, really. “They’ve offered me a full-time job for the duration of filming. It’s only until June or July, but—“
She didn’t get any further before his mouth cut her off. Hard and hungry, his kiss poured out two years of pent-up desire and need and pulled her under. She clung to him as he wrapped himself around her, kissing her over and over again. He raked his hands into her hair, loosening her ponytail just enough for his fingers to gain purchase and then he held her head just so as he plundered her mouth.
He licked and sucked and teased, and she gave back as good as she got. He tasted like cold and hot and everything she’d been missing. Her heart pounded in her throat and she wrapped her arms around his neck, sliding her fingers over the shoulder straps of the bullet-proof vest—trying desperately to gain some leverage to pull herself up his body. He splayed his hands, strong and sure, under her bottom and lifted her effortlessly. She wrapped her legs around his hips, awkwardly bumping into his utility belt and all the things attached to it, and they rocked together.
Ten minutes, she reminded herself. He had to go back to work, even if it was just parking lot monitoring. And somewhere nearby was his—
“Rafaelo Minelli, what in God’s name are you doing?” His mother. Holy frigid moment in hell.
Olivia groaned and buried her face in his neck. Rafe froze against her, his grip on her bottom still steady, but any second now he would drop her and she’d be left—
“Go away, Ma.” He brushed a kiss across Olivia’s brow and whispered that he was going to set her down when it became clear that his mother was going to do no such thing. Her feet found the ground and he kept a tight grip on her, making sure she was settled before he turned, keeping her tucked safely behind his back as he took on the dragon lady. “Seriously? You couldn’t turn around and give us a minute?”
“No, and I can’t believe you’d suggest such a thing. You two have no shame.”
“Imay have no shame when it comes to my wife. She was dragged in here entirely against her will, I assure you.” He laughed when his mother made a shocked and offended harumphing noise. “What areyoudoing, spying on me?”
Olivia peeked out from behind Rafe. Anne pointed to the open office door she was standing next to and frostily explained she’d been getting more paper cups from their supplies. Olivia pressed her face into the back of Rafe’s vest. Maybe if she stayed there until Anne left, she could pretend this never happened.
Between them, her chest started vibrating.Saved by the bell. She fished out her phone. The Dancelight office number displayed on the screen. She could call back in a minute…or she could get the heck out of the most awkward encounter with her mother-in-law in almost two years.
She tapped on Rafe’s back and he turned around, glancing at her phone as he did. “I gotta take this, sorry. See you around?” And with that far-too-glib-for-what-they-just-did blow off, she skedaddled back out the side door Rafe had dragged her in just a few minutes earlier.
— —
The call had been from Johnny and she’d answered his question before she even got to her car. She could have turned around and waited to say goodbye to Rafe, but something told her to go home. A gut feeling that they should do this in baby steps, and walk away while an interaction could be called a success.
Not that being caught by Anne hadn’t put a damper on what they did. But her heart was still thumping hard—in a good way—at how Rafe had kissed her.
The barn doors were wide open. They were definitely doing that again.
Dean gave her a knowing wave as she navigated her way past the crowds and out of the parking lot.
