“So, if I ever want to take you out of commission, I just need to get rid of Nat.” Kieran sipped his cider, his dark eyes blazing with mischief. “Good to know.”
Flicking Kieran’s chest, Lily walked past him and continued pointing out photos. It was far easier to talk about her friends than herself. “This is Alex. I met him in college because weboth minored in mass communication. He’s wonderful and ridiculous. And this is Ilya.” She motioned toward a photo of her two friends, arm in arm, mid-dance at Natalia’s wedding. “That’s from when Nat and Jack got married. My ex and I were in a disagreement of sorts at the time, so his cousin Ilya agreed to be my date. Alex promptly stole him.”
She spun on her heel and faced Kieran, clasping both hands around her bottle if only to give them something to do. “I kept Ilya in the breakup.”
He nodded and glanced around, as if searching for something misplaced. “None with your parents? Siblings?”
Lily took a swig of cider and shook her head. “Don’t have any.”
“You’re an orphan?”
“Didn’t say that.” When had this conversation turned so personal? Taking a trip down memory lane with Kieran wasn’t on the itinerary. The fact of the matter was, she knew almost nothing about him, and he knew almost nothing about her, and that was perfect. Her past would only disappoint him.
She set her cider on the island and stepped into Kieran’s space, spreading her hands up from his chest and over his shoulders. “Enough about me. You came here for sex.”
A scoff rumbled from Kieran’s chest. “This is entirely about you. I’m here to help you scratch an itch. An itch that ismucheasier to reach if you’re relaxed.”
Lily scowled, then pouted. “I just, I don’t know. I thought we’d be naked by now.”
Kieran laughed and looped an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest. “Impatient, are we?”
“No.” A blush flamed up Lily’s neck, and she focused her attention on the cut of Kieran’s collar, visible through the V-neck of his tee. A golden pendant he’d never worn at thegym shimmered in the sunlight. “In the movies they always stumble through the door kissing and fall right into bed.”
“I’d guess the stumbling is because they’re drunk.” He traced small circles against her back with his thumb—slow and tender. “Haven’t you had a hookup before?”
Her blush swarmed her entire face. She shook her head.No.For better or for worse, she’d believed Vovik would be her one and only.
Those little circles hiccupped for a fraction of a moment. “I guess you really did want to marry that guy.”
Marry him. Spend her life with him. Give him all she was, even if he couldn’t give himself in return. Her stomach twisted.
“Nope, nuh-uh.” Lily stepped back, pinning Kieran with her gaze. “Let’s set some ground rules. Number one, no talking about our pasts.”
Sharing pieces of themselves encouraged feelings, and that was the last thing Lily wanted.
“Okay.” He nodded. “Number two, you have to tell me what you want.” He shuffled back, set his cider down and tugged his shirt off over his head, leaving his glorious torso on display.
The sight of him shirtless short-circuited her doubts. It was all she could do to tear her attention away from the sharp cut of muscles over his jeans and back to his eyes. They were warmer in the natural light from her window—like the center of a sunflower. Lush brown and focused.
She took her hat off and tossed it toward her vanity. “Three: no attachments.” It was a promise to herself as much as a boundary.
“Absolutely.” He undid his belt buckle and stepped out of his jeans and socks with an agonizing slowness that made her heartbeat skip. “Four: we keep this low-key.”
Lily nodded and blew out a breath. Kieran didn’t skip leg day, but seeing and believing were two very different things. He could have been a reference model for the statue of David. And the way his cock strained against the confines of his skintight boxer shorts? It was sinful.
She swallowed heavily, her mouth dry. “You’re like, stupid hot. You know that, right?”
Kieran grinned and stepped forward. His hands framed her face, tucking away her hair before coming back to cradle her jaw as if she was something precious. “And you’re gorgeous.”
His kiss was soft, gentle even, and shuttered her breath within her. Her legs turned to jelly, and she might have fallen if not for Kieran’s arm dropping and winding around her waist, pinning her against him. She could taste the smokey whiskey and cider on his tongue, and it set her mind spinning.
Kieran was kissing her. Really kissing her. Not a chaste peck hello or midnight tradition. His tongue curled against hers, unlocking memory and long-buried desire.
A familiar heat settled low in her belly. She raised her hands from her sides and timidly followed the lines of Kieran’s obliques around to his back. She molded herself to him, holding on like he was a buoy in a storm.
Maybe he was.
He abandoned his caress to gather the hem of her dress in his hands before sliding it down her body, never breaking their kiss.
