Page 73 of Falling into Place
“Abou—what?”
“Kissing. How do you feel about that?”
“I—”
“Because here’s the thing: Kissing isn’t the same thing as dating. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“I agree with that specific sentence, yes. But—”
“Because, and hear me out, I think we should go ahead and get that part taken care of. Get it out of the way, or else we’re going to be thinking about it for the next month until this whole magazine thing is over. We both have reasons to see it through to the end, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going to want you the entire time.”
She let out a long, slow exhale. “Same.”
“So that’s a yes, then?” he asked. “I can kiss you? Just the once, for the time being. I promise.”
Her pulse throbbed from her collarbone to her fingertips. She wanted that more than she wanted early access to next year’s Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. “Okay. Yes. Please.”
Then he was moving, coming up against her in three long strides, both hands drifting across her cheeks in a move that was somehow firm and gentle at the same time, and the next thing she knew his open mouth was hot against hers, tipping her head back as a deep groan rumbled from his chest into hers. It felt like he wanted to climb inside her, and she twisted his shirt in her fist to make it easier for him, to pull him closer. She buried her other hand in his hair, and he walked her backward until her shoulders hit the wall. Arching into him, she kissed him deeply, so instantaneously addicted to him that she whimpered when he flattened one palm against the wall and pulled back.
His mouth left hers but didn’t go far, instead moving to rasp into her ear, “Twice? Two times. That’s all I’m asking.”
“Yes to two.” Her hands snaked down his back to grip the ass she’d been dying to investigate. “Maybe three, four tops—”
He kissed her again and dipped down to grip her upper thighs, lifting her, and it was the single hottest thing that had ever happened to her. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he used his hips to pin her to the wall, his full lips determined and insistent. She gave herself over to the moment, clinging to his shoulders and moaning when he did something filthy with his tongue. When she needed a second to breathe and it seemed like he did, too, she tipped her head back.
“So,” she panted. “Is that ... a cucumber in your pants, or ...?”
Brooks did a sort of sharp exhale-laugh thing, and his breath brushed the sensitive skin along her neck, making her shiver as she smiled.
“How do you do that?” he asked, gently sliding her down the front of his body until her feet were back on the ground. His pupils were dilated and his breath came fast. “Turn me on and make me laugh at the same time?”
“It’s a gift.”
He pressed his forehead against hers. “God, I can’t believe I got to do that. Part of me has wanted it since the first time you said ‘dicks’ in that coffee shop.”
She slid her hands down to palm his butt again. “And I’m happy to report this ass was worth the hype.”
“Holy shit,” he said gruffly. “You can’t do that.”
“What? This?” She pulled his hips harder against her.
He made a choking noise. “Fuck. Yes.”
“Why not?”
“Because. Even though we decided on thirty-seven kisses before we wait, I don’t want to get carried away. We have to be careful.”
“Careful. Right.” She nodded. “But before we do that, can we keep doing this? Just for a little bit.”
“Good idea.”
He kissed her hard, dipping his tongue into her mouth and turning her into a vessel of pure sensation. He could suggest just about anything right now and she’d be all in, so it was a good thing he’d come to his senses and drawn a line somewhere.
They remained that way for long moments, wrapped up in each other and barely coming up for air. For a man who’d claimed just a few short months ago to be unfamiliar with the dating scene, he sure knew how to use his mouth. First kisses could be fumbling and awkward, but there was none of that with Brooks.
Kissing him felt like coming home.
A strange beeping came from somewhere to her right, stopped, then started up again.
