I reached up to pull it off.
“Keep the hat,” he said finally. “Put it in the next Cupid’s exchange gift box.”
I laughed, surprised. “You want me to give you your own hat back as a gift?”
“You don’t need to buy me anything,” he said.
I couldn’t decide if that was another kind gesture or if it hurt my feelings a bit.
He nodded once and started back down the stairs. I turned toward my door.
This was it. The perfect end to a perfect evening. We’d skated, we’d talked, we had a moment that felt real and significant, and now we were both going to go home and pretend that none of it had happened.
Except something felt wrong about that. Incomplete.
Yes, I was a little on the romantic side and saw magic where others didn’t. But I was certain it was the kind of night that should end with a kiss at least. The kind of night where something was supposed to happen.
“Ina.”
I turned around at the sound of my name. Dane was coming back up the steps. Not slowly. Not hesitantly. With sudden determination, like something had snapped inside him. That expression on his face told me he made a decision and wasn’t going to second-guess it.
And then he was right there in front of me. His hand cupped my cheek. I was not crazy. The man was looking at me with fire in his eyes.
A second later, he lowered his head and brushed his lips against mine. I reached up and slid my hand to the back of his head, securing his mouth against mine. The kiss deepened and I felt it everywhere. Every nerve ending suddenly came alive. His other hand slid to my waist, pulling me closer. I made a small sound against his mouth before I parted my lips and welcomed his tongue.
I’d been kissed before, but never like this. Never with this kind of hunger that made me forget my own name. His kiss was demanding and thorough, and I met it with everything I had. Our tongues slashed against each other. My mouth opened wider as the man practically swallowed my face.
I welcomed every bit of it.
And then his mouth was gone. I realized I probably looked like a baby bird begging for more.
I quickly snapped my mouth shut and stared at him. His lips were wet from our very exuberant kiss.
I saw a hundred emotions flash across his face—desire, confusion, fear and something that looked almost like wonder.
“Goodnight, Ina,” he said. His voice sounded like he’d been gargling gravel.
And just like that, he was office Dane again.
He walked down the steps. Thankfully, he didn’t run like he regretted the kiss, but he definitely didn’t linger. I stood there frozen on my doorstep, my hand pressed to my lips, my heart racing.
“What the hell?” I murmured.
I fumbled with my keys only to realize the door was already unlocked. I stepped into the apartment in a daze, leaned against the door, and closed my eyes, trying to process what had just happened.
Dane had kissed me. Mybosshad kissed me. And it was better than all the times I’d fantasized about it.
“Well, well, well,” a voice said from the living room, making me jump about a foot in the air. “What’s got you all aflutter?”
My eyes popped open to find Abby standing in the kitchen with a knowing smirk on her face.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice coming out higher than normal. “You’re supposed to be at work!”
“Friends of the head chef are having a private party at the restaurant tonight. I got offered the night off.” She took a sip of her tea, watching me over the rim of the mug. “I was making myself a tasty drink when I heard voices outside. I opened the door to see what all the hubbub was about, and can you imagine what I saw?”
“Something that was meant to be private?” I replied.
“That was not a pretend kiss, Ina. That was a real kiss. Like very,veryreal. You didn’t even realize I opened the door. You two were so caught up I was worried he was going to mount you right there like something out of a nature show. So either you two are both really committed to method acting, or something has changed.”
