Kobe’s warm, honey-brown eyes creased with a welcoming smile, his dimples carving grooves into his stubbled cheeks. “Hello, handsome.”
“You’re earlier than I expected.” It wasn’t what I meant to say, but it was what came out. His constant compliments threw me off.
Instantly uncertain, Kobe’s demeanor shifted, and he thumbed over his shoulder. “I can come back later.”
“No, no. I didn’t mean you weren’t welcome. Ignore me. Come in. Are you hungry? Cosette is finishing dinner, but I haven’t eaten yet. I thought I would wait for you.”
“I’m starving. Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. It’s nothing fancy tonight. This chef took the easy way out.”
“I don’t mind.”
I held the door wide and took his coat once he entered, hanging it in the closet.
When Kobe pulled off the beanie, his hair was wilder than usual. He combed his fingers through it, tugging the knots from the loose curls and pushing them off his forehead. When he let go, it fell haphazardly into his eyes again regardless.
“I’m sure I have wretched hat head.”
“It goes with the season. It’s… cute.”
“Tell that to my boss. I’m waiting for the day she orders Rue to take me to the barber.” Kobe’s shy smile returned, and he stuffed his hands into his pockets, rounded his shoulders forward, and rocked on his feet. The posture radiated uncertainty.
Maybe I wasn’t the only one floundering and forgetting how to maneuver the natural rhythm of a relationship. My god. That was what this was. A relationship. He’d officially slapped a label on it earlier that day. A surge of panic threatened to surface, but I shook it off, hoping Kobe didn’t sense my discomfort.
“So, um, hi,” I said ridiculously.
Kobe tilted his head to the side, his eyes creasing with humor. “Hi. Thanks for inviting me.”
“I wanted you here.” More than I could express. More than my brain and body cared to admit. Enough, it frightened me. I kept expecting a wash of regret, but it never came. I waited for guilt to surface and order me to send Kobe packing because this was surely a violation of the promise I’d made to Angelique, but its presence had lessened since the previous night. Since we’d talked. Since I’d learned more about the handsome detective and his troubled past.
We’d spent the night beside one another. We’d brought each other to climax. Twice. My nerves might be alive and jumping, but it was a positive sensation. One I missed. One I longed for. A welcome change from all the years of suffering I’d endured.
I closed the distance, touched Kobe’s stubble-roughened jaw, threaded my fingers through his thick, untamed mane, and angled his head so he looked me in the eye.
His breath caught. His lips parted, but he didn’t speak. Honey-warm eyes on mine. The December cold radiated off his skin with a scent I was beginning to recognize and associate with him. I liked it. I inhaled it. I wanted more of it.
I stared at his mouth, at his seductive bottom lip, chapped from the winter air, yet enticing me all the same. “May I?”
“You never need to ask.”
I kissed him. Tenderly, like he’d done to me the previous night. I savored his taste and the soft press of his chilled lips against mine. I revisited the silky glide of his warm tongue. The kiss was brief but exhilarating.
A thrum in my heart.
A spark of fire in my veins.
Heat pooled in my core.
When we came apart, Kobe’s exhales fluttered against my mouth.
Neither of us spoke. I could think of nothing to say, and the handsome detective who had somehow charmed his way into my life seemed equally dazed.
Babbling from the kitchen brought us back to earth, and Kobe chuckled. “Wow. You render me utterly useless with that mouth of yours, Doc. I’m curious what else you can do with it.”
I arched a brow. Kobe rarely filtered his comments, and his flirty suggestion was enough to make me shed the last of my nerves.
“I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until later to find out.” I tipped my head in the direction of the kitchen. “I have to take care of the pint-size monster before she escapes her booster seat, scales the counter, and locates the cookies. Singing usually means she’s up to no good.”
