I swallow and try to compose my face, if not the vital organ ricocheting inside my chest. I walk down the hall and lurk outside the bathroom Tyler entered, psyching myself up for what I’m about to do.
A few seconds pass before Tyler exits with his head tilted down.
Now or never. I step in his path, bumping lightly into him.
“Tyler,” I say, feigning surprise. He grabs my arms to steady us, his face inches away. I smile coyly. “If you wanted to touch me, all you had to do was ask.”
Wow—lame. I need to work on my pickup lines.
His expression is blank, and for a moment, I wonder if I’ve botched it. This whole sexual aggression thing is harder than it looks.
“Mira.” His gaze softens, settling warmly on my eyes. “I thought I saw you downstairs.” He grins—which gets my heart beating faster than ever.
Most people think Tyler’s eyes are his best feature. They are devastatingly beautiful, but I have to go with his smile. It snares the deepest part of me, rendering me lightheaded and dumb.
That smile is a menace. And I can’t get enough of it.
My chest does a clench-flutter thing, my mouth twitching into what I hope resembles a happy expression. “How’s it going?” I say, as if this is the first I’ve seen of him tonight, though I’ve stalked him like a panther.
“Good. You been here long?”
“For a little while.” I grab his hand and tug him down the hallway, keeping my shaky grin in place. “Do you mind helping me with something? It’s just back here.”
His brow furrows in concern. “Sure, anything.”
Yet another reason Tyler is perfect. He spent ridiculous amounts of time helping me with math, until I didn’t just improve my grade, I aced the class.
Me? An A in math? It’s all because Tyler cares when few people have. As though he sees potential in me that most people think doesn’t exist.
I open the bedroom door and walk inside. “It’s just this way.”
Tyler chuckles nervously, but he steps into the room behind me. The light from the hallway frames his tall, athletic build. He plucks at his T-shirt and peers around. “So—what’d you need?”
I reach behind him and shut the door, bathing the room in pitch. I press my chest to his and wrap my arms around his neck.
“Just this.” I kiss him.
His lips are still at first, his body tense. Then his mouth melts. Enflames. A kiss that sends a shiver through my belly.
His tongue teases mine, hands tightening on my waist…
My breath hitches. This is a mistake. I should have picked a different guy. One who doesn’t affect me so much. I like Tyler, and when he leaves…
I pull away.
Tyler’s hands slide to my hips, without letting go. “Mira, what’s going on? I mean, I’m not complaining…”
What am I doing? I’m ruining it. This is what I’ve wanted for so long and I’m screwing it up.
Of course he’s wondering why his aloof tutoring student is hitting on him. I thought he liked me, but I wasn’t a hundred percent sure. Based on the intensity of that kiss, I think we’re good in the attraction department. I need to stop freaking out, and go with it.
“Is this okay?” My eyes have adjusted to the dark. I stand on tiptoe and kiss his strong jaw, trailing my lips down his throat, my hands wandering across his wide shoulders and chest to a narrow, flat stomach.
His breath catches and he pulls me closer. “Are you sure? I mean—I didn’t know.”
I silence that thought with another kiss, my mouth parting and taking whatever he’s willing to give.
Tyler is over six feet tall and I have to reach to meet his mouth, but he’s holding me firmly, his lips moving eagerly with mine, sending more flutters through my belly, loosening my body along with my nerves.
