Playing the Game

26. More Than Kissing

My eyes are unapologetically glued to the chiseled chest and far too drool worthy abs on display in front of me. He was not that defined this summer and I was drooling then. Now it's just unfair how good he looks.

"Eyes are up here, Tink," he smirks, flexing those pretty muscles of his just for good measure.

"You're still an ass, you know that?" I smile, catching a similar one playing along his lips now.

"But an ass you kinda like?"

"I think the word you're looking for is tolerate."

"Isn't that basically the same thing for you?"

Rolling my eyes, I let out a breath. There's really no point denying it at this point. "Sure."

His hand falls to his chest, the look of pure shock falling across his face. "Mia Hill just admitted she enjoys my company."

"That's not what I said."

"No? Because it's definitely what I heard."

"You're lucky I do sort of enjoy your company. Otherwise I'd never let that slide."

He laughs, the light bouncing off his eyes, and I can't help but feel a bit of that same joy sprinkling over me.

"Look," I hesitate, glancing around the hall, suddenly very aware of where I am at the moment. "Are you going to invite me in?"

He takes a small step back, arm stretched to the side as I step in. When he closes the door behind me I turn to face him.

Without wasting any more time where I'm likely to talk myself out of what I'm about to say, I jump right in. "I know that I've done a really good job of keeping distance between us. And I know I've been kind of... uptight," my eyes roll to his with his use of the word, hesitating as I let it linger between us for a moment. "I've had a lot of shit going on lately. And I guess I just haven't been handling the stress in the best way. I'm sorry that you've gotten the brunt of that while we've been here."

"You don't have to apologize. It's water under the bridge, now."

"I do. I want to. It was easier for me to push you away than to admit that I actually do enjoy kissing you." That bright ego badge he flaunts lights up. "But I meant what I said in the library. I don't want a relationship. I have too much going on to try and even begin to travel a road of feelings and obligations. So, I guess I'm just wondering if you meant what you said."

"I meant everything," he responds without hesitating, taking a small step forward as he narrows his eyes. "But I'm going to need you to be a bit more specific. Which part exactly are you referring to?"

"The one about me being in charge of us kissing," I pause, borrowing a bit of his confidence before I offer the next piece. "Or more than kissing..."

He nods once, lifting his chin before letting it drop. With another small step forward, he begins to close the gap between us. My heart is picking up speed, anticipating where my proclamation is about to lead us. "You're in charge, Tink. What do you want?"

Pretty sure the giant lump I just pushed down my throat was audible from where he's standing. I adjust my stance, straightening out just a bit before scraping up every piece of confidence I have and taking a breath to remind myself exactly why I'm here. "I want to keep kissing you. I want to keep doing more than kissing you."

The sure as shit confidence he's always sporting shines through as he steps directly in front of me. The heat of our bodies tangling together, sending waves of anticipation into my gut as he stands just inches away. I can smell the fresh hints of aftershave, the subtle notes of cedar swirling around as his dark chocolate eyes bore into mine.