She blinked rapidly but didn’t immediately respond.
“I’m guessing you don’t want that,” I added, vulnerability I wanted to shove to the side bubbling up.
“I didn’t say that,” she replied in a husky voice.
My heart skipped ten beats. “Do you want to kiss me?”
“I didn’t say that either.” The words weren’t welcome, but her small smile was. “Maybe,” she added almost as an afterthought.
“Maybe?”
She laughed, a nervous little sound that had me going warm all over.
“Tell me what you want,” I said. It wasn’t an order as much as a plea.
“I’m afraid. I’m afraid I’ll kiss you and it will be so good we go into the bedroom.”
I nodded in understanding. “And you’re afraid that will be bad?”
“No, I’m afraid it will be good.”
Now I was confused. “And why is that a bad thing?”
“Because I don’t do relationships.”
“How come?”
“Because I don’t want to become my mother.”
There was a lot she didn’t say, but I could read between the lines. “You could never be your mother.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Because… you just can’t be her.” I shook my head. “You’re a good person. You might be the best person I’ve ever met.”
“I ruined your panel.”
“You tried to make it better. I didn’t let you.” My fingers were light when I brushed her hair away from her face. “Can I kiss you?”
I wouldn’t do it without her permission. If she said no, I would force myself to remain in the friend zone for the rest of my life. I would hate it, but I would do it.
Her sigh was long and drawn out. “Yeah, you can kiss me.”
I didn’t wait for her to change her mind. Those words were like oxygen, and warm breath blew through my very soul. The second our lips touched, explosions started going off inside myhead. I saw colors I’d never seen before. I felt warmth I’d never felt. She melted into my arms and gave herself entirely to me.
It felt as if my heart was rupturing in my chest, repairing itself, then doing it all over again. I had never felt a connection this strong with anybody before. She emptied me and filled me up with every touch of her lips.
I have no idea how long the kiss lasted. It could have been minutes. It could have been hours. All I knew was that when I finally pulled back, panting, her lips were red and swollen. There was no doubt mine were too.
“Do you want me to walk you home?” I asked, surprising myself with how husky my voice was.
She shook her head.
Hope welled in my chest. “Do you want to stay with me tonight?”
Her grin was rueful. “How come I have to answer all the questions? Why can’t you just ask me to stay?”
“Because I need this to be something you want, not something I convince you to do.”
