Jesse laughs awkwardly, dropping his touch from my cheek and taking a step back from the counter. Damn but my skin feels cold and lonely without his warm hand.
“I can’t stay,” he tells me, andohh, much as I hate that he’s going already, I do love how much he looks like he doesn’t like it. “I’ve got to get back to work on my research.”
“You could do it here.” Shit, I sound needy. Like I’m begging him not to leave. What kind of crazy Jesse-magic has this guy worked on me to reduce me to this? And why the fuck am I so totally here for it?
He shakes his head taking another step back, and for a hot moment, I feel like my stomach’s just gone and fallen straight through to the floor, ‘cause look at me, putting myself out there and showing him what he does to me, and—
“I wouldn’t be able to get anything done, Tris,” he whispers across the space between us. “You’d distract me too much. It’s bad enough back at home, where I can’t stop thinking about you,” and there goes that blush, creeping right down under the neck of his ugly-ass sweater. “But if I stay here, I won’t be able to keep my eyes off you.”
Well fuck.
My grin is ridiculous. Full on, totally ridiculous. But hell if I can find it in myself to care.
“I’ll see you tonight though?” I wet my lips and tug the lowerone between my teeth a little, and IswearI’m not trying to distract him from how totally needy I’m being.
He swallows hard, eyes on my mouth. “Yes. Tonight.”
And holy shit. My cock legitimately jumps and swells in my jeans at how sexy and intense and breathless he just sounded.
Can someonepleasetell me why it’s only noon right now?
“Oh. My. Fucking. God!” Reagan squeals the moment Jesse’s out the door. “Helovesyou, Tristan. Like, seriously.That man is in love with you.”
“’Cause he brought me lunch?”
Reagan’s full of shit. She reads too many damn romance novels.
Right?
Right. ‘Cause there’s not a fucking chance that Jesse could actuallyloveme.
Is there?
And when will those damn butterflies give it a fucking rest?
Reagan rolls her eyes. “Not just because he brought you lunch. Though that was, like, disgustingly sweet. Butohmygod, do you see how he looks at you? Like, I don’t think he seesanythingelse. And did you even hear what he straight up said? That he can’t stop thinking about you?”
“He just always looks like that.” God, I need my stupid-ass heart to calm the fuck down.And don’t get me started on those motherfucking butterflies.
“Healways looks likethat because when you see him, he’salwayslooking atyou.”
I totally pretend like I don’t hear her. “And besides, all he was talking about when he said that was that he wants to get me naked and in his bed again. Like I would have been all morning ifsomeonehadn’t made me get called into work this morning.”
“No way.” She shakes her head, totally not taking the bait of my bitchy last words. “That isnotall it is, and I definitely donotneed to hear the gory details. And anyway, I thought you two were, you know, taking things slow?”
I raise an eyebrow at her. Or try to. Not sure I can really feel my face right about now.
“Okay,fiiiine,” she whines. “Yes, I need to hear the gory details. I want them.Allllof them. Let me have them?Pleeease?”
“Not happening, Reagan. Gentlemen don’t kiss and tell.” Thank fuck she’s gone and distracted me with this.
She laughs so loud that the few people parked in chairs at the back of the shop raise their heads and look over at us. “You arenota gentleman, hon. That boyfriend of yours though? Definitely a different matter.”
“Notmy boyfriend.”
“Oh, but he wants to be,” she smirks at me. “And youknowyou want him to be too.”
Fuck Reagan and her stupid-ass romance novels. The only way I could get all her talk aboutloveandboyfriendsout of my head was by filling it instead with scrumptiously dirty thoughts about my sunshine and all the things wecouldhave done to each other if Ihadn’thad to leave him for work this morning. And all the things we could do tonight…
