“I…” She swallows, her fingers rising to clutch the lapels of my jacket. “I should.”
“You absolutely should.”
Alex draws in a deep breath, and for a second, I think she’ll shove me away. Time suspends for three halting seconds before she softens, her exhale skittering through parted lips.
My hand frames her face, my thumb sweeping her cheek. “Do you have any idea how breathtaking you are?”
“I’ve been told I’m easy on the eyes.”
I chuckle. “Thatis the understatement of the century.”
Alex’s eyes flash, her smirk dancing across her mouth. “Are you going to keep telling me I’m pretty, or are you going to kiss me?”
My head slowly shakes as I lower it toward hers. “Is that permission, Ms. Stevens?”
But I don’t get an answer—not in words, anyway.
With one swift tug, Alex pulls my lips to hers. We both groan at the contact, and the sound of her responding this way, feeling the same way I do…short circuits something in my soul. My hand grips her jaw, keeping her from advancing, and the impatient squeak she makes sends heat collecting at the base of my spine. The only thing giving me pause is the need to know that this time it’s different.
“Alex,” I murmur against her lips.
She hums a response, eyelashes fluttering on her cheeks.
“Tell me this isn’t fake.”
“You’re really demanding tonight.”
That snarky quip awards her another quick kiss before I pull back until our gazes meet. “This is important to me.”
Alex’s expression sobers, the haze clearing from her eyes. “I meant what I said earlier. I need to focus on work, not whateverweare.”
I lift one shoulder as my thumb traces lazy circles over the sensitive spot below her ear, sending goosebumps down her neck. “We can be whatever you want, Alex.”
“What if I want to be enemies?”
I pull my attention away from the area Ivery muchwant to kiss. Alex’s eyes are nearly black in the hazy streetlights, her pupils demolishing their warm brown color.
“Like I said, whatever you want. Just as long as we’re both clear that it’s real.”
Alex rakes her bottom lip through her teeth, and I barely stifle a moan. I have never wanted to kiss a woman more than I want to devour Alex’s tempting lips, but I’m not willing for this to go further only to have her brush it away later.
“I can’t promise anything. This kiss might be our only one.”
“I understand.” My body drifts forward on its own. “As much as you like to joke that I don’t, Ido actuallylisten to you.”
Her gaze skirts all over my face, one hand sliding up my chest and around my neck until her fingertips slip into my hair. “Then kiss me for real.”
I’d planned on diving in like a starved man, but I find myself elongating every moment. I want the memory of this to be so deeply embedded in my bones that I could forget my name and never forget her.
Our staggered breaths mix as my nose slowly slides down hers. A low grunt escapes me when Alex squeezes the back of my neck, impatient. Tilting her head, I set a soft kiss at the corner of her jaw before skirting my lips until they barely brush hers. The touch is so featherlight the contact could almost be a fever dream. Alex’s breathy sigh as she goes completely slack sends a rush of euphoria careening through my veins. It’s only then that I deepen the kiss.
The sensation of finally kissing Alex is completely overwhelming, but I’ve never felt more dialed into another person. When she slides her free hand under my jacket, pulling me closer, I press my palm wide at the small of her back. When shewhimpers as I lift my face to steal a breath, I soothe a kiss over her cheek, letting our foreheads rock together before pouring myself into her again.
My mind settles into a quiet hush, only responding to her micromovements, her slight sounds. The only other time I felt this connected with another person had been at a raucous house party in California. Every other kiss since then has felt…off somehow.
Then, everything I’ve ever known or understood about the world spins on its head when Alex yanks me forward, flips us, and pressesmeinto the truck. The sensation of her hot palms against my chest before they slide up to frame my face sends fractured sparks zipping to the soles of my feet. Alex isn’t as careful and calculated in her approach, and my mind sings heady gratitude as she kisses me to within an inch of my life.
Desperation overtakes me as I respond to her fervid touches. Was I really the fool who said I’d take one kiss and walk away? Because clearly, I need to kiss Alex every day for the rest of my life. Our mouths tangle as I spread my hands wide over her back, arching her into me.
