“I like the sound of that,” Dan whispered before kissing me again.
“After you shower…” He smelled exactly like a man who’d had an epiphany halfway through his nightly jog and ran home at top speed to tell his girlfriend about it.
Wait.Did I just call myself his girlfriend?We’d never officially had the talk. We were living together, making out like teenagers, not seeing other people, and this man had given me the most intense orgasm ever—more than once. What the fuck? Was I in a relationship?
“Right.” Dan took a step back and tossed me over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. “I want you waiting for me when I get out.” He started to leave the kitchen.
“Wait,” I squealed from over his shoulder. “Don’t forget the food.” He turned around, grabbed the large paper bag off the counter, and climbed the stairs.
“So what are you learning about the festival?” Dan called to me over the hiss of the jets from his shower. This was the third time he’d repeated that question and the first time I could understand him. I rose from the couch, peeled off my T-shirt, and stepped out of my leggings. The bathroom was already bathed in steam when I unsnapped my bra and wiggled out of my panties.
“Hi,” I whispered when Dan turned around to face me, shielding me from the spray of the showerhead.
“What are you doing, Emma Walters?” he asked, brushing his lips over mine.
“I couldn’t understand a word you were saying, so”—I rubbed the backs of my fingertips over one of his pecs—“I decided to get closer.” He curled a finger under my chin and tipped my face up to meet his lips. We kissed for a long time until Dan separated our lips with a small popping sound. “Now, what did you want to ask me again?” I raised an eyebrow and tucked my bottom lip between my teeth.
“I have no fucking idea.” Dan scooped me up under the thighs and pressed me into the corner of the shower, joining our mouths and taking frequent breaks to nibble on my chin, neck, and earlobes. “Fuck, Emma. I need you.”
“You have me,” I answered, kissing him back.
“Do I?” He lowered me to my feet and took a step back.
“Dan.” I let out a nervous chuckle. “I’m naked in your shower. I think it’s pretty obvious what I want.” I grabbed the back of his head and pulled our faces together. “Now, go get a condom and I’ll show you.”
“Emma”—Dan sighed and ran his fingers through his wet hair—“I don’t have any condoms.”
“What?” I spluttered. “You still don’t have—wait, can we switch for a little bit? I’m getting cold.” I shivered as the first blast of hot water hit my back, then almost immediately soothed the chill. “You still don’t have condoms? I thought after that night—”
“I can’t buy condoms, Emma—” he began before I cut him off.
“What? Why not?”
“Here, Emma. I can’t buy condoms here.”
“I’m still confused.”
“This is an incredibly small town. Everyone knows everything about everybody. You saw how Belinda reacted when she saw us atthe diner. If I bought a pack of condoms at the store, everyone would make assumptions.”
“They would be right.” I raised an eyebrow.
“I just didn’t want to start any unnecessary gossip, and I definitely didn’t want to do anything to make you uncomfortable. I see how hard you’re working to make a good impression on everyone, and—”
“Dan, were you trying to protect my reputation?” I let out an incredulous chuckle.
He rolled his eyes and nodded. “It’s not as antiquated as you’re making it sound, but yes, I was.”
“That is one of the sweetest things I’ve ever heard, and it really makes me wish that we had some condoms.”
Dan pressed our foreheads together and chuckled.
“Why didn’t you just order some online?” I asked. He stiffened, blinked a few times, and picked his head up, staring at something on the shower wall behind me.
“What?”
“Nothing, love. I just feel like a git. I’ve never bought anything online since I’ve always made it a point to only shop locally. I’m more than a little embarrassed that the idea of ordering them online never occurred to me.”
I burst out laughing as Dan glowered at me, narrowing his eyes.
