“Yeah. I mean, it was hardly a kiss. But I crossed the line, and I’m sorry. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable around me, especially because we’re teammates.”
More than that, I don’t want to ruin whatever is budding between us. I figure if I’m coming clean about one thing, I should come clean about everything else. It takes me a few heartbeats to draw up the courage. Now or never, do or die.
“The truth is, Kellan, I like you as more than a friend. I enjoy the time we spend together. I actually never thought you’d give me the time of day.”
It’s then that Kellan faces me. His nipples are puckered. Right. It’s the middle of winter. Whose idiot idea was it to have a car wash in the middle of February?
Don’t look at his nipples, you jackass.
More importantly, donotimagine sucking them.
He says, “Why do you say that? How do you know I wouldn’t give you the time of day?”
Okay, why is he asking me that question? I would have thought it obvious. “Because you told me once?”
Kellan’s expression is blank.
His confusion feels sincere. I wait for the hackles to subside. Taunting me is one thing, but if he doesn’t actually remember… “It was a few weeks after you joined the team. The guys went out for a drink after a game, and I asked if I could buy you a drink. You laughed in my face.” The humiliation of that moment comes rushing back, flaming the skin of my cheeks and jaw. It wasn’t a cruel laugh, and he patted my back like I was an adorable child, but it still stung. After that, I kept my feelings to myself.
Kellan looks upset by this. “What a jackass,” he mutters.
My lips press together. “You were, honestly. A simplenowould have done the trick.”
His eyebrows pinch together. “You’re right. I was.” The words are stilted. He clears his throat. “Look. I wanted to address the elephant in the room.”
My stomach starts churning. Not sure if it’s in fear or anticipation. “But we’re outside.”
He pauses, blinks a few times. His mouth curves upward. “The elephant in the parking lot.”
I start bobbing my head like a damn chicken. Good. Great. We’re going to finally talk about the brush of lips that may or may not have been a kiss, but that I’ve been jacking off to for days. That’s progress in my book.
“Do you regret what happened?” he asks.
That’s a loaded question, and it makes my pulse race. Is he looking foryes? Or does he want to hear me say no? He’s been so hard to read when normally, Kellan Dumont is an open book, always laughing, joking, bringing people together.
Voice a whisper, I say, “I don’t. I regret that it didn’t go on for longer.”
A small nod. He doesn’t take his dark eyes off me. “Me, too.”
It’s the last thing I expect him to say.
So he wasn’t interested in me all those months ago, but now he is? What changed? And when?
“What now?” I try to act casual, but I can’t quite hide the yearning in my voice. It’s torture standing this close to him and not touch him. I’m imagining warm skin, firm muscle. Ugh.
“I’m not sure.”
“And if I wanted to kiss you again?”
His face sharpens with new awareness. His nostrils flare as he leans closer, scenting me.
Tentatively, our lips brush. Kellan’s are unbearably soft, the bottom one much fuller than the top. It lasts barely a second before I pull back. “Okay?” I ask, wanting to make sure we’re on the same page.
A shiver runs through him. He hasn’t moved away. I take that as a good sign. “Again.”
Cupping his face in my hands, I tilt up his chin and brush soft, barely-there kisses across his mouth. It’s lazy, affectionate, and goes on for an unspecified period of time. Eventually, his tongue darts out, licking at the seam of my lips. I open and let him in, sucking in a sharp breath the instant our tongues brush. The feeling sends a delicious shiver through me.
Finally, I pull back, trying to catch my breath. “How was that?”
