“Did you have fun?”
“As much as a work function can be fun. You made it enjoyable.”
I was swooning…he was flirting, right? “You are an incredible dancer.”
“Many years of practice.” As he brought his lips to his glass, I scooted closer.
“Lukas?”
“Yes, Sam?”
He didn’t move but his eyes flickered from my gaze to my hand inching closer to his thigh.
“I don’t want to embarrass myself or anything. I suppose if you knew me really well, you’d understand if I said to you that life was too short and we have to seize the day and all that.”
“Okay…”
He was frozen like a statue, but he didn’t stop me.
“If you don’t want this, I understand, but do me a favor?”
“What’s that?”
I swallowed. “Don’t be mean to me, Lukas.”
Without giving him a chance to respond, I kissed him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Lukas
I wasn’t oblivious;I knew Sam was attracted to me. As the night wore on it had become apparent he was aroused. I smelled it on him as we’d danced, in the limo, and as soon as he’d taken the seat beside me. I wasn’t sure I would have stopped Sam from kissing me, but one look at his eyes when he’d asked me not to be mean to him had silenced any protest I may have had.
His lips were warm, soft, and the tiny quiver belied his confidence. I was still holding my wineglass, so with my empty hand, I tenderly cupped his cheek and gave in. Kissing Sam wasn’t a hardship. The annoying, overly excitable man was like sunlight, and I found I was enjoying my time with him. Something that had been latent began to flicker to life the moment his tongue swept inside my mouth.
Once the kiss ended, Sam’s forehead rested on mine, his breath ragged and his aroma thick with lust. It was intoxicating.
“Thank you,” he said on an exhale.
I wasn’t sure if he was thanking me for the kiss or for not saying something mean, but what I did know was that I wanted to do that again.
“You’re thanking me?” I pulled away only to put my glass on the table. Before he could slip away, I took his face in my hands.
“Uh, yeah? You let me kiss you, and you were nice.”
I chuckled. “I was nice…how was the kiss, Sam?”
“It was…” He licked his lips, and I followed the movement with my eyes.
“It was what?”
He sighed, closed his eyes, and whispered, “Everything.”
The huge smile that formed on my face felt foreign. As if stone had broken and a creature that had once lain dormant was crashing through. Sam opened his eyes and gasped.
“I’d like to kiss you now, Sam.”
“You’re smiling…like, a lot.”
