“Fuck, woman.”
She chuckled, running a hand through the spattering of hair on my chest as a final pulse of arousal went through me and a possessive satisfaction settled behind my ribs.
“I think you broke my ability to speak.”
I turned my head and smiled, arching one brow before pinching her middle.
“I think you’re doing a damn good job talking right now.”
“Why, thank you. Maverick. This was—”
I propped myself up with one elbow, causing her to raise her head and face me, crinkling her brows because of the interruption.
“This was more than I expected,” I finished, wondering if saying something so forward would drive her away.
Did I want to drive her away or beg her to stay?
Those questions were better left for a time when I could stare into my firepit with a beer and Malibu, contemplating why my thoughts about her had changed so dramatically.
“I couldn’t have said it better. This. Us. The last thing I expected was for this thing of ours to be so intense.”
“I want to take you out,” I said, before I could change my mind. “Somewhere nice, where we can talk over a bottle of wine and appetizers we can’t pronounce.”
“Really?” she asked, almost like she’d expected me to push her aside and get away as fast as I could.
“Yeah, really. What do you say? You weren’t expecting me to hightail it out of here, were you?”
“No. Yes. I don’t know what I expected, Maverick. Only that this was a very unexpected surprise.”
“Well, stick with me, kid, and prepare for the unexpected.”
I held my breath as she scooted closer, practically crawling on top of me before her lips caressed mine. I moved my mouth against hers, relishing in her scent and body. This kiss wasn’t born of lust and passion. The way her lips met mine spoke of unspoken words, lingering glances, and the promise of more.
When she pulled away, keeping her hands on my cheeks, her smile could have lit up the darkness of a black hole in the farthest reaches of space.
“Then there’s only one answer I can give. It’s a date.”
Chapter 23
An incessant beepingdisturbed my well-deserved slumber, making me groan and fling my hand toward the end table beside my bed. I gripped my phone and pressed the snooze,stopping the noise before I stretched my arms toward the ceiling, grateful the annoying sound hadn’t completely jarred me awake.
As I took stock of my body—noticing the pleasant ache between my legs and through my belly from using long dormant muscles—I smiled, turning to the window and breathing deeply into the pillow that was occupied until after midnight.
I’d woken up alone, but after a moment, another smile crept across my features, remembering the feather-light kisses Maverick had pressed to my cheeks and nose to wake me after we’d drifted off to sleep.
I had giggled, swatting him away, only to open my eyes and find him dressed in his rumpled shirt and jeans. I’d propped myself up on my elbows, loving how his eyes widened when the sheet slipped from my shoulders to my waist.
“I feel like a teenager sneaking out of my girlfriend’s house, woman. And you, naked, disheveled, and looking fucking gorgeous, are making it even harder to leave.”
He glanced at his crotch and back to me, making it perfectly clear what he meant when he saidharder.
I’d giggled, shaking my head and not bothering to adjust the sheet. After last night, any lingering self-doubt or nervousness I had felt at him seeing my no-longer-thirty-year-old body had disappeared, along with my modesty.
“But I am not prepared to face your dad and my mom in the morning.”
I’d nodded, agreeing with his statement, not willing to face the wrath—or perhaps unrestrained glee—of my father in the morning, either.
“I meant what I said, though. I want to take you out on a proper date. Somewhere downtown, where I have to overpay for parking or risk some douche denting my truck.”
