“That was barely a kiss,” Addy whispers.
I swallow. “Are you suggesting we make out or something?”
He chuckles. “There you go, sounding like a fifteen-year-old again.”
“I’m not fifteen.”
“No, you’re not.”
His lips connect with mine. It’s more than a fleeting peck. My eyes flutter shut as his lips massage mine. I grab his T-shirt to steady myself as my body begins to tingle. It starts in my lips but quickly spreads out to my cheek and jaw beneath his hand, the skin his thick beard is tickling, and then farther still until my entire body seems to be crackling with electricity. Addy’s tongue brushes across the seam of my lips, and it feels like the most natural thing in the world to part them. His tongue slips inside my mouth, caressing mine.
Addy stands tall. I blink my eyes open and stare up at him. My heart is pounding, and my lips feel oddly cold now that the kiss is over.
He swipes his thumb over my chin. “You’ve got beard rash.”
For some reason, it makes me laugh. “Well, that’s never happened before. Does it suit me?”
“Yes.”
“Addy…”
“Did that mean anything to you?” he asks.
I touch my fingers to my lips. “Yes.” Fear stabs at my heart. “Did it mean anything to you?”
He cups my face. “Yes.” And then kisses me.
This time, he pushes me against the wall. It’s probably a good thing, as my legs are rapidly turning to jelly. At least now I’ve got something to prop me up. The tingling takes hold of my body even faster than before. It’s undeniable and unmistakable and so fucking confusing. But it’s also lovely, and I’m not sure I want him to stop. But he does, mainly because we both have to breathe at some point.
“Addy…”
He scoops me into his arms as though I’m weightless—to be fair, he’s almost a foot taller than me, and he lugs huge tree branches around for a living—and carries me through to the sitting room. He sits on the sofa and hugs me to him, his chest shuddering.
“Addy…”
“That’s my name.” His voice is cracked like he’s trying hard not to cry.
“What’s wrong? Oh, God. You regret kissing me, don’t you? This was a huge mistake. Now everything’s going to be weird and—”
“Shut the fuck up, Fitz,” Addy whispers before pressing his lips to mine again.
The next thing I know, I’m lying on the sofa with Addy leaning over me as he kisses me tenderly. I wrap my arm around his shoulders and tangle my fingers through his dark hair. It’s odd how the scrape of his beard can be so alien but also so nice. He moves so he’s on his knees on the sofa, his forearms resting on either side of my head. It’s probably a better position for his back. He hasn’t got any weight on me at all. There’s space between our bodies. His fingers comb through my hair, and his tongue slips between my lips. He breaks for air, nuzzles my nose, and then kisses me again.
If you’d asked me this morning what I’d be doing this evening, kissing my best friend wouldn’t have been anywhere on my list. But here we are, and curiously, I don’t want to stop. I’ve loved Addy for years, just not likethis. Have I?
He stops and rests his forehead against mine. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
“I’ve never kissed a guy before either.”
I rake my teeth over my lip. “You’re very good at it. I kind of wish I’d known that years ago so you could have given me some tips. How youdon’thave women lining up at the door to go out with you, I don’t know. You should open a kissing booth. You’d make a fortune.”
He smothers my lips with his to shut me up. It’s a brief kiss but a lot more than the peck I tried to get away with earlier.
“I don’t want to kiss anyone else.”
“Really?” I squeak. I clear my throat and hope my normal voice comes out. “Really?”
