The hint of Italian spices filled the air. “Store-bought meal or handpicked ingredients?”
“The only hint you’re getting is it’s one of my childhood favorites . . . made from scratch.”
“Scratch? Wow, color me intrigued.” Leaning forward, I placed my wineglass down. “How was your day?”
“Long.”
“Tell me about it.” I sighed with laughter. “I’m sorry again about earlier. I know I left you in a . . . in a rather difficult position.”
“You have nothing to apologize for, especially not that. I’m a grown man who can handle a change in plans. Plus, I was on the clock, albeit on my lunch break, so giving myself a release was never an option.”
“Still, I—” My words fizzled when his thumb pressed into the cleft of my chin, and his eyes hooded like he was waging an inner battle. “What’s holding you back?”
“Once I taste you again, I won’t be able to stop.”
“What if I don’t want you to?”
He leaned his forehead against mine. “I told myself I would do this right; I want to do right by you.”
My heart skipped a beat, and I was seconds away from hurling myself into this gorgeous man’s arms.
“Boden, kiss me,” I begged and thanked the lord; he obliged because the moment his lips brushed mine, the blissful feeling of euphoria swept through my veins.
I ran my fingers up the back of his neck and into his hair, tugging on his short silky strands with this imperative need to get closer. He lifted me by my hips to sit astride his lap when I shifted to my knees. Goose bumps danced across my exposed skin from his touch when Boden pulled me closer, ghosting his lips across mine.
My breathing quickened, and my eyes closed when he parted my lips with his tongue and deepened the kiss. My body came to life. Our irrefutable desire for each other was palpable and arousing, and I was helpless to control the moan that rumbled through me as our kiss quickly turned heated.
Boden controlled every aspect of my mouth with skillful finesse while my arousal for him throbbed as I shamelessly rocked my hips against his, seeking the evidence of his desire for me. Boden’s hands gripped the back of my shoulders, and I tipped my head back as he lavished his mouth down the side of my neck.
“This dress, did you choose it with me doing this in mind?” He blew a calculated breath across my collarbone.
“Yes.” It wasn’t my original intent when I set out to find the perfect outfit for the occasion, but once I put on the off-the-shoulder boho ruffle hemmed dress and caught a glimpse in the mirror, I knew it was perfect.
“I love the unfiltered access it gives me.”
“Glad you approve.”
“You look . . .” He pulled back and paused.
“Hot, sexy, edible?” I offered to fill in the blanks.
He cupped the sides of my face and held my eyes captive. “All-the-fucking-above and then some, beautiful. Lakelyn, you are a vision. While your beauty steals my breath, it’s you; everything about you has me all tangled up.”
“Boden.”
Beep.The bloody oven timer went off, causing us to break apart in frustration.
“Good timing.”
“Debatable,” I murmured.
He threaded his fingers in my hair and rested his forehead against mine. “You aren’t making this easy on me . . . I’m hanging by a thread here, Lakelyn . . . but I can’t fuck you here like this. I can’t, I won’t.”
My heart sank, and I suddenly felt embarrassed for being so bold in my desire for him.
“When I take you, Lakelyn, when I bury my cock so deep in your heat, there’s only one place I want you for our first time, and that’s in my bed. I’ve pictured you there for so long. I don’t want to rush a second of our time together.” The oven timer beeped again. “Food first, because, well, stamina.” He shrugged with a wicked grin. “But once we finish our dinner, all bets are off.”
“So, no dessert?”
