“Don’t worry about it. Theo and I have just been catching up.” Slipping his arms around her, Matt pulled her in close and kissed her. “I’m glad you’re back. You’re staying here tonight, right?”
Before Liv answered him, he pressed his mouth against hers again. Unlike his first kiss, which had been a brief “Hello,” he took his time caressing her lips until she opened for him. The moment his tongue touched hers, the outside world disappeared. Liv tasted like iced coffee and something unique to her. And he couldn’t get enough.
Blood pounded in his ears, blocking out everything around them as every cell in his body urged him to take things further. To lead her upstairs, remove her clothes, and pick up where they’d left off that morning before she headed into work.
Thankfully, one of them was still grounded in reality, and Liv pulled away before he could act on the fantasy running through his head.
“Now might be a good time to stop.” Judging by her voice, the kiss had affected her just as much as him.
Matt touched his forehead to hers and took in a deep breath. “Yeah, we should probably go outside before I change my mind and we go to my room.”
“Your brother just got here. It would be rude to do that.”
“He’d understand,” Matt said as he ran his fingers through her hair.
“What about his girlfriend?”
“She’s been in their room on her phone almost the entire time she’s been here. I doubt she would even notice.” Theo hadn’t said it, but Matt knew he was annoyed that Brianna had spent so much time in their room since they arrived.
Liv stepped out of his embrace and took his hand. “C’mon, let’s go.”
“Before we head up, I need to grab another bottle of wine.” Matt allowed her to lead him toward the kitchen. “You never answered me. You are staying here tonight, right?”
She’d spent the night with him six out of the last ten days. When she wasn’t there, his bed felt empty in a way it never had in the past, and his mornings lacked something he couldn’t identify.
“Are you sure you want me to? You have guests.”
“So what? It’s just my brother.” Even if his parents were the ones visiting, he’d want her to stay.
“As long as you’re sure, I’ll stay.”
He wanted more than for her to just stay the night. Matt wanted Liv to move in with him, which was something he’d never considered asking any of his girlfriends to do. But he wasn’t sure she was ready for that. Until he felt more confident of her answer, he’d wait to ask.
Theo was shaking his head at something Brianna had just said when Matt and Liv joined them.
“But —”
His brother nodded in their direction. “Let’s talk about it later, okay?”
Crossing her arms, Brianna huffed. “Fine.”
He didn’t need a crystal ball to know that later, Theo would get an earful and possibly find himself sleeping on the floor.
As he made introductions, Matt poured Liv a glass of wine and refilled his brother’s.
“We have dinner reservations at Rosso Linea for six.” This time of year, if you didn’t make reservations on a Friday night, you weren’t getting a table. And while the Ocean View Grill was perhaps his favorite restaurant in town, he assumed that after spending the day working there, Liv would prefer something else.
“That sounds lovely, but I’m meeting up with Gina in a little while.”
The look Theo shot in Brianna’s direction required no explanation. He wasn’t happy with his girlfriend’s plans.
“We haven’t seen each other in ages,” she continued.
Matt didn’t care if she joined them or not. Clearly, his brother did, though. “I get it. We can go out some other night while you’re here.”
Brianna glanced at Theo before looking at him and smiling. “Thanks for understanding.”
“It’s up to you, but I’d rather stay here and get takeout,” Theo said.
