"Trust me?"
I blinked, biting my lip as I stared at the blindfold in Nico's hands. "Uh—"
"It's not what you think," Nico said quickly, smirking slightly at the look on my face as he tugged me closer to him. "Get your head out of the gutter."
I huffed. "I wasn't thinking anything."
"It's just a game," he continued, placing the container of strawberries in front of me. "You have to guess what I'm dipping the strawberry in. Can't use your sight. That's cheating."
I swallowed. "Okay. What if I get it wrong?"
Nico's lips curled to that gorgeous half-smile as he walked around me, placing the cloth over my eyes and tying it. Darkness instantly covered my vision. "Too tight?" he asked softly. I shook my head in answer.
He sat back down in front of me. "No rights or wrongs. You just have to tell me your guess. No hands, either. I'll feed it to you."
I nodded. "Okay."
"Open," Nico ordered quietly, and I opened my mouth to take a bite of the coated sweet fruit.
My tongue darted out to lick my lips. "Was that...sour cream and brown sugar?"
"A point to you, princess," Nico mumbled lowly before I heard him chew.
Oh.
My breathing quickened, and I had to pinch myself to get it together. Nico wasn't even touching me.
"Okay," Nico said, shifting closer to me on the sofa bed so that I could feel the rough brush of his jeans against my thigh. "Try this one."
My teeth bit into the fruit once more. "That was melted chocolate," I stated confidently. "And nuts. Was that it?"
Nico's grin was evident when he answered, "Two-zero. I like this game, princess. You're winning it."
And then there he was again—eating the second half of the berry. I was sure the tips of my ears were flushed red.
I tried another. "Okay, I don't know what that was, but it was kind of good."
"That was hard," he agreed. "Mixture of honey and lime juice, sugar and mint. Two-one."
He made me open my mouth again, and this time, I tasted something a little sour, like lemon.
"Close enough. Creamy lemon curd, actually, but close. Two-two."
I laughed. "No point for effort?"
"Nope," he said back, in the same teasing voice, and somehow, had he come closer? "Open."
My expression twisted into a grimace at the taste. "I never liked caramel."
Nico's answering chuckle told me he knew.
I bit into the next strawberry, licking my lips as I cocked my head. "The coating is vanilla frosting, but I have no idea what the crunchy things on top of it are."
"Yogurt, actually, and toasted coconut. Taste good?"
I nodded, heartbeat turning erratic as I listened to him chew the second half again.
"That's a tie to three," Nico murmured. "Want a tie-breaker?"
"Yeah."
And I expected him to tell me to open my mouth for another strawberry because damn it, that was the game, wasn't it? But Nico didn't say anything, and he was eerily quiet and still, and then his hand slid against the curve of my jaw before leaning down and pressing his mouth to mine.
An entire ocean roared inside my head. I stifled a gasp of surprise, my fingers latching on to his shirt as Nico's lips moved against mine. Slowly. Sweetly.
He pulled away and reached behind me to take the blindfold off. "Is this okay?" he asked quietly.
I swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah."
The touch of his lips were warm once again. He fit my lower lip in between his own as he tugged gently, and then he was pulling away again. Unconsciously, I followed his retreating mouth, and he gave me another soft and long kiss, and I could feel him smiling against my lips.
One of his hands moved to the back of my head and he leaned forward, pulling me down with him, and his other has his fingers gripping the curve of my waist. Nico kissed me harder and deeper, and tugged on my lower lip once again before coaxing my lips to part, and his tongue slipped in, tasting of strawberries and chocolate.
He took my hands and gently placed them above my head. My back arched from the sofa, and Nico traced his tongue along the roof of my mouth. A low and quiet moan came from his chest as he positioned himself deeper in between my legs, hovering above me, with one hand running along my thigh. I kissed him back with the same ferocity and passion and longing—and when he lifted his head to pull away, Nico caught my lower lip between his teeth, and a sound close to a whimper escaped me.
"Shit," Nico rasped against my mouth. He let go of my hands and arched up to tug me against his lap with my knees on either side of his hips, chasing my lips for another kiss. In an act of bravery, I reached down and slid my hands under the hem of his shirt. Nico's body jerked in surprise when my fingers touched his bare, taut skin, and he dropped his head against my neck, lips mouthing at the skin dangerously near my collarbone. A shiver went up my spine, and my hands continued their search until they reached the rock-hard muscles of his stomach.
"Hell," Nico groaned. "Thea. Stop. Stop, stop."
I pulled back immediately and straightened up to scramble off his lap. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
Nico's arms held me tightly against him. "Don't apologize," he said, breathing heavily. "You okay?"
I looked down. "This is embarrassing."
He smiled. His lips were red and a little swollen, and I wanted to kiss him again. "You're cute."
I hid my face in my hands. "Nico!"
"Don't be embarrassed, baby," he said, laughing. He reached out to tuck a loose strand of my hair beneath my ear, then tipped my chin up to make me look at him. "You okay?" he asked again, tone quiet and warm.
"Yeah," I muttered, because I was. "Are you?"
"Yeah," he murmured back, staring at me. "I'm perfect."