Frances felt like her heart was going to jump out of her chest at any moment.
Finally, it was Christopher who broke the silence. “We should get out of here,” he whispered, his voice a bit rough.
Frances nodded, though she made no immediate effort to leave. “Yes, we should,” she whispered back.
Again, neither of them moved, their eyes still locked, the air between them thick with tension.
Frances saw Christopher’s gaze stray to her lips, and then he moved closer to her.
Her breath hitched in her throat.
“Chris—”
He did not let her complete her words, as his mouth softly landed on hers.
Suddenly, the entire world felt like it had stopped spinning on its axis, and the only thing holding Frances up was Christopher.
His kiss was soft, hesitant, but it was more than anything Frances could have ever dreamed of.
She felt like she was being swept off her feet.
But as abruptly as he had pressed his lips to hers, he pulled away.
Frances could not recognize the look on his face. If he was happy or if he regretted what he just did. Nor did he give her much time to figure it out.
“I… excuse me,” he stammered out, and then he quickly walked away, leaving her by herself inside the closet.
She had never felt lonelier in her life.
* * *
Gods. What have I just done?
Christopher paced the length of the hallway, eager to get away from Frances.
He had somehow exhibited great self-control in breaking the kiss—something that felt impossible when he was in the moment.
He had kissed Frances. And to his shock, she had not pulled away. Instead, she had kissed him back.
The thought alone was enough to send his mind into a tizzy, if not the lingering taste of her lips.
“I got you!” Edwin suddenly screamed behind him.
“Oh, right,” Christopher replied. He had completely forgotten about the game.
“It is your turn to seek now.”
Christopher thought back to Frances. Surely, he could not stand to see her again in some inviting corner of a closet, or the other.
It would be too hard for him to resist her.
“Edwin, I just remembered that I have some work to do. I shall take my leave now, but you must continue playing.”
Edwin’s smile fell, but he did not protest much. Christopher took this as an opportunity to scurry away from there. Or more specifically, away from Frances. As far as he could go.
When he was in the privacy of his study, he finally let himself have a moment.
Christopher would be lying if he said that he had not considered the possibility of kissing Frances before. It might have even been a regular occurrence in his thoughts.
