“I can’t say that.” Becca shook her head. She held his eyes with hers. “But it’s not like that. Itwasn’tlike that.”
His gut clenched. He wanted this with her, so why was he finding it hard to breathe suddenly? What was with the intense desire to rewind time to thirty minutes ago when things were a helluva lot simpler? He liked simple. Simple was easy. But he wanted this. Complicated could be great, too. The past didn’t have to matter.
So he kissed her.
She let out a sigh just before his mouth met hers, like she’d been waiting for this very thing her entire life. His own breath vacated his body with the thrill of emotion as their mouths touched.
He could’ve drowned in her kiss, and he wouldn’t have minded it at all. Still, he recovered fast, his chest heaving as her tongue darted against his lips. His stomach fucking fluttered. Rock stars didn’t flutter during a kiss. But it felt good. Nice. Amazing. He parted his lips to explore further. His hands roamed along her back to her waist, lower to her ass.
She had a fantastic backside.
And hell, this woman knew how to kiss.
Every inch of his skin tingled in the best way possible. She mewed softly against his mouth. He craved more of her, more than this kiss.
She made the sound again. This time he grunted in reply. Like he was a caveman or some shit.
What kind of chemistry lesson were they having in his kitchen?
The noises they were both making made him want to take her upstairs and really show her all corners of his mattress. Naked. For hours.
That thought brought the present into quick focus.
This was Becca. He liked her. He didn’t want to be the alternate choice because she wanted someone else. He needed to figure out where he was with that. He didn’t want to fuck up a shot with her by fucking her when she wanted to be with someone else.
He pulled away. Reluctant as all hell, but he pulled away.
Because he needed to think with his brain—the one in his skull, not the one in his pants.
“Want to help me with something?” he asked, his voice huskier than usual thanks to the remaining hope of a game of horizontal Twister his body held onto, even though his brain said he needed to figure shit out first.
She nodded, and said a breathy, “Yeah.”
He felt lighter. Good. This was good. It wasn’t sex good, but it’d be fun. He’d promised Gibson he could get out of the house for a while, and he had every intention of following through on that promise.
Instead of pressing another kiss to Becca’s lips, he snagged the front pack cat carrier he’d purchased online and shrugged it on. He’d chosen the black version with white accents, since it matched Gibson. Normally, he wasn’t into the whole matchy-matchy thing, but in this case, it worked.
“Gibson hates getting loaded. You mind helping out with that?” He nodded toward the glowering feline as he continued adjusting straps.
Gibson had his frowny face on, but he’d turn that around once they bundled up and got outside. His cranky cat put on a good front, but once they got moving, he purred like he still had his testicles.
“You’re taking me for a walk with your cat?” Becca asked, her pretty face totally neutral. She was not grabbing Gibs.
“Uh huh.” He unzipped the pocket to make room for the cat.
“Last night, when I said we should do something nuts, you bought milkshakes.” She waved her hand, gesturing to the front he now wore.
“I did.” He nodded because…well… he had.
“But this is totally normal?” She still motioned to the front pack like it wasn’t normal.
Um. It was normal. They wouldn’t sell them online if it wasn’t. “Yes.”
“Next time I want to do something crazy, I’m going to ask you to do something ordinary. Because I think you’ve got your wires crossed.” Finally, she lifted Gibs and helped settle him in the pack.
“That’s probable.” He made kissy faces at his cat. “He doesn’t like loading up, but he loves it when we roll.”
Becca shook her head, closed her eyes, and chuckled. “Okay, then.”
