Page 56 of Dream Lake

“I already know,” he said coldly, dying inside. “Give it a rest, Zoë. I’ve got to go.”

Zoë nodded. She didn’t even look offended. Somehow she knew that it was the only way he could leave her, that some things couldn’t be seasoned to make them go down easier.

Alex reached for the door handle, but she stopped him with a touch on his wrist.

“Wait,” she said. “One more thing.”

Even though she was no longer touching him, the skin of his wrist had come alive with craving. It was getting worse, he thought with something like despair, this need that threatened to turn him inside out.

“From now on I’ll never mention anything about this again,” Zoë said, “or tell you about my feelings, or even try to be friends with you. But in return, I want one favor.”

“The cat door,” Alex said in resignation.

She shook her head. “I want you to kiss me. One time.”

“What? No.” He was aghast.“No.”

“You owe me a favor.”

“Why the hell do you want that?”

Zoë looked stubborn. “I just want to know what it feels like.”

“I kissed you once before. Right here.”

“That doesn’t count. You were holding back.”

“You want me to hold back,” he assured her grimly.

“No I don’t.”

“Zoë, damn it, this is not going to change anything.”

“I know that. I don’t expect anything to change.” She was practically vibrating with nerves. “I just want it as a sort of… amuse-bouche.”

“What’s an amuse-bouche?” he managed to ask, afraid of the answer.

“It’s a French term for a tidbit the waiter brings from the chef at the beginning of a meal. Nothing you order or pay for, it’s just… given.” At his stunned silence, she added helpfully, “The literal translation is ‘to please the mouth.’”

Alex gave her a dark glance. “You want a favor from me, it’s going to involve crown molding or adding extra can lights. I draw the line at amusing your bouche.”

“One kissis impossible? Twenty seconds of putting your lips against mine scares you that much?”

“Now you’re going to time it,” he said sardonically.

“I’m not going to time it,” she protested. “That was just a suggestion.”

“Well, you can forget it.”

She looked offended. “I don’t understand why you’re angry.”

“Like hell. We both know you’re trying to prove a point.”

“What point is that?”

“You want to make sure I know what I’m giving up. You want me to be sorry about not going after you.”

She opened her mouth to deny it. But she hesitated.

---