Intertwined

chapter eighteen

"TROUBLE?" RHETT'S VOICE hangs in the air.

I lift my head at the sound of the nickname I've come accustomed to, and realize I've been sitting at my kitchen table staring at him instead of getting up. Something crawls up my ribcage, settling on my chest, and I know it's not a good sign, but when concern coats Rhett's features, I can't help but push through it and stand. He's still holding his hand out to me and when I take it, he slowly pulls me down onto the couch next to him and all of this is feeling too warm and cozy. We had rules, unspoken rules, but suddenly it feels like we're breaking them all.

"Everything okay?" he asks, his brows pulled together when I shift and pull my feet up onto the couch cushion. I can feel the anxiety clawing at my skin, ready to dig in, but I can't let it sit there. If there's one thing we've been good at keeping to, it's communicating.

"Does this not feel..." I trail off, trying to find the right words. "I don't know. It feels like our lines are getting blurred."

"What do you mean?"

"This." I gesture between us, fighting the urge to curl in on myself. "Us. Things don't feel crystal clear anymore, Rhett. It feels like things are getting crossed, and I don't know what to do with that. I mean, you kissed me in front of Vanessa, that feels very... I don't know."

"Well," he says and moves his hand to my back, forcing me to turn into him. "I kissed you because I meant what I said," he tells me, pausing to press his lips to my collar. "I wanted to kiss you, and I did it in front of Nessa because I don't hide things from her. Did it make you uncomfortable?"

The unease in my chest settles as I shake my head. "No," I whisper because nothing about kissing Rhett makes me uncomfortable. Everything about him—inside and outside of the bedroom—makes me comfortable. Like a cocoon of safety has been put around me since he stepped into my life. "I like kissing you."

He hums in response against my skin, bringing a smile to my lips at the tickle it causes. "Do you want to watch a movie?"

"No," I say and lean down, finding his lips and move to straddle his lap. Poe having long vacated the couch to eat her food. His hands move to my ass immediately, pulling me forward across his lap and I instantly feel him harden beneath me. I smile at how quickly he gets turned on by me simply sitting in his lap, and take full advantage as I meet his lips, rolling my hips forward to meet his.

"Trouble," he bites out a warning, squeezing my hips.

"Yes?" I whisper against his lips, trying not to laugh when he fights a groan in response. "I thought you wanted to kiss me?"

"You're evil," he mumbles.

"Sure," I say and move my fingers into the ends of his hair, grinding against him when his arms wrap around me tightly. My back arches as he leans into me, pulling my hips towards him in an effort to find more friction. My fingers sinking into his hair at the top of his head. I feel every ounce of his warmth wrap around me, and I don't ever want to leave it.

His lips are warm against mine, his tongue slipping into my mouth. I feel like I might bust from his kiss alone, every nerve eager to have him closer. When he lifts his hips up towards me, I know this is going down the same path it always does, and because I have the worse timing ever, I have to pull away from him.

A quiet whimper falls from his lips at the loss of my lips against his, and it's the cutest thing ever as his lip move to spot just below my ear. He knows it's my favorite spot to be kissed and makes it ten times harder when I have to push back from him. "I have to–"

He cuts me off by finding my lips again, and I give into him because it's impossible not to. "No, don't say it," he whispers against my lips. "Please."

"Take Poe out," I mumble against his lips.