Page 74 of Moms of Mayhem
Shannon chuckled, then leaned her head down too. “You’re not half bad.”
I gasped, my hand over my chest. “Are… are wefriendsnow?”
Shannon shook her head, her nose scrunched up but asmile spreading as if it was against her will. “Not yet. But closer.”
Gathering Stevie’s and Shannon’s things, I followed them to the door, already mentally planning out next Tuesday. I stood on the stoop as they got into Shannon’s little car, waving goodbye.
Stevie rolled down the window, half hanging out of it as she pointed the door and whisper-yelled, “Beckett’s hot as fuck, Emmy. You should bang him.”
A choked laugh sounded behind me, and my cheeks flushed with warmth.
“Goodnight, Stevie.” I drew out the words as they drove away, Stevie’s hand out the window even though it was freezing outside.
I went back inside, suddenly aware it was just Beckett and me in my house. He stood at the kitchen sink, rinsing out cups and looking far too comfortable in my space. Crossing my arms, I leaned against the wall and watched him, noticing the way his biceps flexed on each pass of the sponge.
Stevie was right—Beckett was probably the hottest man I’d ever seen, and the little buzz I had going was just enough to make me admit it to myself.
He looked up at me while he rinsed the next dish. “Did you have fun?”
“Mmhmm,” I mumbled, staring at the bubbles clinging to his forearms.
He dried his hands on a dish towel, then turned and leaned against the counter, arms crossed casually like he hadn’t hijacked all the air in the room by existing.
“I like your friends.” A slow grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Even if one of them wants to launch a publiccampaign for us to hook up. Actually, maybe that makes me like her more.”
I groaned, pressing my hands to my face. “You weren’t supposed to hear that.”
“I was standing right behind you.”
“Still.”
His little laugh was enough to make me peer through my fingers, and his gaze lit with a warmth I felt all the way to my core.
“Was she wrong?” There was no teasing in his voice. Just quiet curiosity, layered with heat and something I wasn’t ready to name yet.
I swallowed. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”
He slowly stepped closer, like giving me time to bolt if I needed to. “That’s okay,” he said. “We don’t have to know.”
God, he smelled good. Clean and warm and like the spearmint gum he chewed. He stopped a few feet away, close enough to feel but not touch.
“Can I kiss you?” he asked, voice low and careful.
I stared up at him, meeting his bright blue gaze. My breaths came quick, my heart racing as I looked up at the boy I’d known my whole life, grown into a man I liked far more than I was comfortable admitting.
“Yes.”
One word. Barely louder than a breath.
In an instant, he was there, one hand cupping my cheek, the other brushing the curve of my waist like I was something delicate. His mouth met mine soft at first, but when I leaned into him, it deepened, slow and sure and so full of want I nearly melted against the wall.
It wasn’t rushed. It wasn’t frantic.
It waseverything.
When we finally pulled apart, I blinked up at him, dazed and breathless.
“Well,” I said. “Stevie’s going to freak out when I tell her.”
