Quick.
Not enough.
I pulled away momentarily to look at Odette, whose mouth was slightly open. I moved in for the second kiss, this one slightly rougher as I moved my hand to the back of her head and pulled her closer. She tasted not just like tea, but like sugar, sweet and addictive. A small moan escaped Odette, and I pressed in further, her mouth opening for me, and I let my tongue slip in, getting a better taste.
I could do this all day with this damn woman, but a cough came from close by, and I pulled away, remembering we were not alone. Odette looked up at me, dazed.
“You taste like sugar.”
Odette pulled away and let out a bellowed laugh before taking a sip of her tea that, this time, hadn’t spilled everywhere.
“Ten packets of sugar, if you can’t smell how sweet it is, it’s not sweet enough.”
I grabbed the cup and took a swig of the very warm tea; the sugar hit me first before the hints of black tea.
“Fuck,” I winced and handed her back the cup, and she let out another laugh.
“It’s my favorite,” she shrugged. “I’ve always liked it this sweet, sometimes with a little honey, depending on the season.”
“Seems to be just as sweet as you,” Odette bit her lip at my remark. She took one last long sip before seeming to finish her cup off. “Why don’t you show me around the rest of the market?”
“I’d really love that.”
“Good,” I took a step toward her, filling the space she’d created. “It’s a date.”
“Date?” Odette seemed tense again and unsure of what I had just said.
“Yeah. We just had an unforgettable kiss, you spilled tea on me, and I’m in a new city. Your city, as a matter of fact. This is the perfect setting for a first date.”
She looked at me in disbelief.
“You seem so unreal. Like a character from one of my books, or even my game. How you speak, so surely, like you know exactly what it is you want.”
“Well,” I leaned down and lightly kissed Odette one more time. “I have no idea what I am doing, and I’m out of my element, but what I do know is that I want to spend more time with you. Kiss you more. Walk around and hold your hand.” I grabbed her free hand and intertwined our fingers. “What I know at this exact moment is that I don’t want to leave your side today.”
Odette did what I had done earlier, opening and closing her mouth a few times before speaking.
“Then it’s a date.”
Adate.
We were officially on a date, and I had no idea what to do. How did we even get here?
“Where should we start?” Ryker’s question broke me from my thoughts.
Shit. Where should we start?
“Have you eaten yet?” I asked.
“I have not.”
“Okay,” I started to walk away toward an area that had the most food options. Ryker followed beside me but didn’t say anything more. I was a fucking ball of nerves, not knowing what to do. It was different when we were at the awards show. We had a reason to be there, an agenda to stick by, but it was just the two of us, and I didn’t know how to handle that.
I finished my tea and tossed it into the first bin I could find before coming up to one of my favorite booths, which had amazing sweet treats, but also served the best apple cider donuts.
“Do you prefer sweet or salty?” I turned around to Ryker, finally paying him a little more attention rather than just dragging him around. He looked completely relaxed, dressed inloose jeans and a black shirt. I knew it was from a game, but I didn’t let him know that I knew which one.
“I’m okay with either as long as it’s not that tea again.” He laughed, and my shoulders relaxed at the joke. He was trying to make light of this, and I was grateful.
