Page 35 of My Last Dance

He quickly sat on the bucket and patted his lap.

“You’re sure?” I asked warily.

He nodded. “I’m sure, Piper.”

Sucking in a deep breath, I sat on top of him and my body finally relaxed. “Th-thank you.” I dropped my head against his shoulder. “This would feel kind of…romantic if it wasn’t for the pain splintering up my legs.”

He paused for a beat. “Sorry I made you run, I wasn’t thinking.” He cleared his throat. “I wish I could take away the pain. I wish it was mine.”

My heart practically beat out of my chest. “You don’t mean that.”

“Yeah, I really do,” he whispered.

I pulled back and studied his earnest face. My thumb traced under his eye, making him suck in a sharp breath. “That might be the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

“Piper…” His voice sounded strangled. “I really want to kiss you.”

A calmness came over me then, which was shocking because I thought when the time finally came for my first kiss, I’d be nervous. But this was Richard. This had been a long time coming. I’d been waiting for this.

I held his eyes. “That was the bet, wasn’t it?”

He nodded slowly. “Yeah, yeah, it was.”

My thumb ghosted over his lips, making a slight groan rip from his throat.

“Piper,” he said in a low voice.

I gently kissed the corner of his mouth, and that’s all it took for him to snap. He kissed me back quickly, deeply.

His strong hands trailed up my body. One hand stayed on my waist while the other went up to my jaw.

Without breaking the kiss, I took the opportunity to explore him. My hands went up his shirt, and I finally touched all the muscles I’d been watching him work on in the gym all these years.

“Fuck, Piper,” he groaned, then his mouth was moving down my neck, making me gasp. An electric current stirred to life inside me, making me want more. I could feel his smile against my skin, I wondered if he was feeling the same thing.

My hand went into his hair, and I directed him back to my mouth.

I’m not sure how long we were in there, but then my phone loudly buzzed in my pocket, making both of us pull back.

My coaches were surely looking for me, but I didn’t want to walk away from him.

“Piper!” Mer’s voice called out in the hallway.

Both of us froze, waiting for her to throw the door open.

Kappy, still looking dazed, scratched his head.

I worried my bottom lip. “Don’t… um…” I swallowed hard. “Don’t tell anyone.” I didn’t want him blurting to Colt about our kiss before I told Mer, and part of me was nervous to say anything because I didn’t want to disrupt the friend group. “I don’t want it to change anything, ya know?”

His dazed eyes bounced around my face. “If that’s what you want.”

Nodding quickly, I gave him a little grin.

“I’ll leave… uh…. a couple minutes after you,” he whispered, sounding dazed. He held his fist over his mouth. “Damn.”

Giggling at his response, I reluctantly stood. I pulled my zip-up straight and smoothed my hands over my hair. “How do I look?”

“Fucking perfect,” he breathed out.

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