Far too soon, Andrew pulled back from her, from the magic they’d just made together. She opened her eyes, met his dark orbs. Paige wanted to press her lips to his again, she wanted to hold on to the slice of bliss she’d felt a little longer.
He set her down on shaky legs. “Um,” he murmured, scratching the back of his head.
“Um,” she echoed. She couldn’t stop looking at his mouth, at those talented lips. “What did you just do?”
“Nothing,” he said.
“Nothing? It felt like something to me.”Something good.
He nodded. “Right.” He took a big step away from her.
“Andrew?” She inched closer.
She searched his face, warring with herself over what she wanted to do next. Paige had never been the type to make the first move, but that kiss had been a long time coming. The past few days, her desire for him had increased tenfold. She wasn’t naïve. The close proximity, the knowledge that he’d been sleeping right down the hall from her, the flashes of his bare chest in her dreams, or even the way they were with each other had heightened her emotions. It could even be the fact that he was so attentive to her, so calm. So attractive. And she wanted him. Plain and simple.
“You should probably go inside,” he suggested.
Paige closed the distance between them. “I could go inside.”
“It would probably be the best thing to do right now.” His voice was a low rumble.
The smart thing to do would be to stay far away from him, to do as he requested and walk her ass back up to the house. But the heat of his gaze, and the way he stared at her, made that impossible. “What if I don’t?”
Andrew swallowed visibly. “Why wouldn’t you?”
Standing on the tips of her toes, she brushed her lips over his. “Because I don’t want to.” Then she kissed him, slowly and tenderly.
He pulled back again. “What did you just do?”
“Let’s go with it,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her mouth to his.
She groaned when he nipped her bottom lip.Or is that him?They were out on the beach, where anyone could happen upon them. But she didn’t care. She just wanted more.
“Paige,” he murmured against her mouth, before deepening the kiss again, dipping his tongue back into her mouth.
How is he still standing?Because she definitely wanted to drop to her knees and pull him with her, she wanted to peel his shirt off and trace his muscles with her hands, she wanted to lick him. Everywhere.
Off in the distance, they heard a speedboat on the water. And soon, his warmth was replaced by a soft breeze as he released his hold on her. She gripped his biceps, to steady herself. “Impressive,” she mumbled without thinking. With wide eyes, she stared up at him. “I meant, you . . .”What the hell did I mean?“Um. I’m flustered,” she admitted. “B-because you just kissed me.”
“Technically, you kissed me.”
“Afteryou kissed me,” she corrected. She felt a blush work its way up her neck to her ears. “Let’s set the record straight.”
“Okay. What do you want to do now?”
As forward as she’d been a few minutes ago, Paige didn’t think she could tell him exactly what she wanted to do. Even though she was sure he wouldn’t object. But she didn’t want them to do anything they’d regret in the morning. There was too much on the line to make a decision based on her horniness.
Tugging on her shirt, she cleared her throat. “Um . . . I—” She exhaled. “I have to go.”
Embarrassed at her frazzled state, Paige hurried back to the house. Inside, she headed straight to the refrigerator, pulled a bottle of water out, and guzzled it down. It did nothing to erase his taste, or his smell, or his body from her thoughts. It definitely didn’t cool her down. Because the more she thought about him, the more she wanted to just go with her first thought. Sex.Hot.Sweaty.Dirty.Naked. Sex.
Squeezing her eyes shut, she let out a slow breath.
“Paige?”
She jumped, startled by his voice. “Hi,” she breathed, grabbing a knife and an onion.
“Hi.” He stepped forward. “Paige, I—”
