He hesitated, his eyes dropping to the table before meeting mine. "Maybe one day you can tell me about your childhood?"
My face colored, and I snatched my hand back. I should have known I couldn't fool him. We'd been dancing around this subject for a while—him prompting me for tidbits of my past and me diverting attention. I felt the sincerity radiating off him and knew he was coming from more than just a place of being nosey.
My breath deepened. "That could happen. Yes."
We stopped drinking after two beers, mainly because we'd both driven to Malley's. I was grateful we hadn't bumped into anyone we knew here. It allowed us both to relax without the pressure of past lives intruding.
As he walked me to his car, our bodies bumped now and then. His body heat gave me a sort of excited awareness that I hadn't experienced in a while. When we arrived at my car, my body responded to his closeness, and I became very aware of what happened the last time he'd walked me to my vehicle.
"Well, this is me. Thank you for walking me." My hand fidgeted with the strap of my bag.
Brian's eyes bored into mine with a tenderness I couldn't look away from. It made the butterflies in my stomach take flight as a flicker of arousal started above my panties.
"I'm going to do something that I hope like hell you won't mind," he warned.
His hands cupped my jaw just as my breath sucked in. I was frozen in anticipation, my body refusing to move as I waited for what he would do to me. His palm slid up my jaw, smoothing past the erratic beat of my pulse before his fingers buried themselves in my hair.
Still, I did nothing.
His face descended slowly, allowing me ample time to move away. But I didn't. I couldn't.
His soft mouth landed on mine and held there without moving. My breath suspended as my eyes fluttered shut. His mouth moved against mine softly. Once. Twice. A Third time.
All too soon, he pulled back, his eyes hooded and golden. No tongues had been exchanged, yet it felt like the most passionate kiss I'd ever experienced.
"Drive safe," he murmured, his breath fanning my lips before his hands slid slowly out of my hair.
Dazed, I opened my car with a shaky hand as he watched. I couldn't remember how I got home; only that in one moment, I was starting my car and the next, I was suddenly parked in my designated apartment spot.
My lips still tingled from his unassuming kiss.
Chapter 35
Brian
Alight rain drizzled gently on my head as I turned to lock my front door. The weather hadn’t been great today, with rain clouds coming and going and a lingering wind that carried a biting chill. It wasn’t advisable to go out. Certainly not recommended to go for a run.
Although, the way I’d been feeling lately, it might as well be shitting rainbows and unicorns. Not even the weather gods could bring my mood down. Harry had even caught me whistling along toWaterlooby ABBA when it came on the radio we kept on site. They’d started speculating—or gossiping, in my opinion—whether I’d started dating someone. I was annoyed but not surprised by their nosiness. After all, they’d never seen me act this way, even when I’d been sleeping around regularly.
Two of my men called in sick this past week. There’d been a delay with the delivery of roof tiles, and I’d had to wade through bureaucratic red tape by the town council. I handled itall without my usual gruffness, even telling our roof supplier not to worry about it and that we all made mistakes. There’d been a prolonged silence on the line; I’d thought he’d hung up.
Maria was the only thing that got me through a week that normally would’ve had me tearing my hair out. That, and reliving the taste and feel of her lips. As far as kisses went, it was chaste as fuck; but going by the boner that had been punching my jeans on the drive home, it was practically pornographic.
I couldn’t wait to see her again. To listen to her and watch her small hands as they gestured around while she told me about her day. The way she stared at me with a tiny smile as I relayed mine. The feel of her small body against mine when we hugged.
Unfortunately, it would be a while before I saw her again. Next week, Maria, Charli, and Toni were heading to New York for a couple of days for a hair seminar. Who knew they had those? She’d been working extra hours lately to get on top of paperwork since they’d be understaffed, briefly, during that time. I understood the pressure of running your own business and the worry and strain she was under. Still, I hoped to see her before she left—even if it was for a few minutes.
I bent over to tuck my key in my sock, but when I straightened, a figure at the end of the drive had me almost jumping a foot in the air.
“Sarah.”
My sister-in-law had a tentative smile straining her face as she watched me quietly. I hadn’t heard from her since she’d sent me that ranting text, and discomfort at the memory started to crowd me. It felt unnatural not to see Diane and Sarah regularly, so I was happy to see her despite our tensions. But I still had no idea what to say to her.
“Hi,” she greeted, shifting on one foot to another.
“Sarah. Hey, how are you?”
She lifted a slim shoulder, her mouth turning down. “I’m doing okay.” She sounded so forlorn, and I felt guilty for not reaching out sooner.
