“What?” he asks on a snort. “What kind of answer is that? Paper? Marmalade? Am I an eighty-year-old with xylophagia?”
“What’s that?” I ask as he pops open the lemon coconut square we purchased to share.
“A person who consumes paper.”
“How the hell do you know that word off the top of your head?”
He smirks. “It’s called reading, baby. Maybe give it a try.”
“Oh, with that sort of attitude, you won’t be invited into my main hole for a while.”
“Good.” He tips my chin up. “Since we’re taking it slow and all.”
“Ohhh, nice try.” I shake my head. “Fine, when we get back to the apartment, I’ll make it my job to force you into coming somehow tonight.”
“Oh no, please don’t,” he says, his voice full of sarcasm. “I’d hate every second of that.”
I dip my fork into the corner of the lemon bar and lift it to my lips. “You know, you’re really snarky for the guy who likes to play the quiet, shy card.”
“I’m not playing any card,” he says while he takes a bite of the lemon square as well. It’s so freaking good. We should have purchased two. “Just been living in a fog until you came around.”
I tilt my head to the side. “You can’t say those things to me.”
“Why not?” he asks.
“Because . . .” I look up at him through my lashes. “Makes me fall harder.”
“Good,” he says. “Then I’m doing my job.”
I lookat myself in the mirror as I brush my teeth. The bite marks from the other night are fading, but still obvious.
My cheeks are still flushed from the way Halsey held me close while we floated back on the aquabus, telling me how lucky he was and how beautiful I am.
My heart is freaking full, and I’m trying not to be overwhelmed, but how could I not be? In the matter of weeks . . . WEEKS . . . I’ve found an unexpected man in my life that I just thought was an acquaintance. I’ve watched him morph and change, and I’m growing very attached to this man. I’ve developed such strong feelings for him.
It’s insane.
So crazy to even try to comprehend.
I thought I was in love, yet here I am with Halsey, feeling something entirely different, something deeper, something that beats through me all the way to the marrow of my bones.
How is that possible? Is Penny right? Had things between Perry and me fizzled to the point that we weren’t reallydatingby the time we broke up? It does have merit. Yes, we had sex, but it seemed more like habit rather than lovemaking near the end. Definitely wasn’t fucking.How did I not see that?
I spit into the sink and rinse my mouth with some water before I turn off the light to my bathroom and head into my bedroom. I glance at myself in the full-length mirror and adjust the lingerie set I decided to wear to bed.
It’s a variation of the one I wore the other night where it’s held together by a tie at my breasts. But this one is forest-green, see-through lace. It really does nothing other than entice the person you’re trying to entice.
And even if he only holds me tonight, at least I’ll feel beautiful while he does it.
On a deep breath, I head over to his bedroom, thinking about how weird it is that we’re roommates who are dating and sleep in the same bed but still technically have different bedrooms. Probably best to give us both space. Not to mention, I don’t thinkI’m in a position where I’m ready for him to watch me floss just yet. The only thing more intimate than flossing in front of your partner is going number two. Number one, no big deal, but number two, that edges out flossing by a hair.
The light on his bedside table is on, casting the room in a warm glow. He isn’t on the bed yet, but he walks out of his bathroom as I approach, only to look to the side and catch me en route.
That’s when he pauses, and his eyes unapologetically roam my body, fixating on my chest. He drags his hand over his mouth and says, “Blakely. . .”
“Yes?” I smile.
“What are you doing?”
