Page 33 of Final Goodbye
“Want to come up to the house? We can talk about our days, and I can make some hot tea.” The way he stared into my eyes in such close proximity to me as he asked me to come inside gave me the chills.?
Was he hoping for a Netflix and chill kind of situation? Or was he just a genuine guy wanting to spend some time with me? Honestly, I’d be content with either. Maybe he was a genuine guy who also wanted to fool around with me. I just knew I wanted to run my hands over his tanned chest and every indent on his stomach. Hesitantly, I nodded my head.
“Come on. Let's get inside so I can warm up and put some clothes on.” Grabbing my hand, he led the way up and I tried my best to keep my eyes off the low hanging towel but failed miserably.
I held back the urge I had to tear off his towel in the middle of the walkway and drop to my knees as we continued toward his home.
“Wow. It’s beautiful in here,” I said in genuine shock. It looked like a professional came in here with a magic wand. The inside of his house belonged in a magazine; it was stunning.?
“Thank you. I had help from my mom. She’s a professional interior designer so I took advantage of her talent.” His admission settled my mind, seeing as how my next question was going to be“Did a woman once live here?”. Because what guy at twenty-five had a home that was put together this well? I was expecting the typical bachelor pad.
“Well, she did an amazing job.” He walked around the house as he started the kettle on the stove and lit a fire in the living room. All while wearing that damn towel. Was he trying to tempt me to rip it off his body?
Between the kettle of tea and the fire, I wondered if this was just how he lived in his day-to-day life. Did he do these things inhis everyday life or was he trying to be a romantic because I was here? Either way, I could get used to this.?
“I’m going to get changed. Have a seat on the couch or feel free to look around, I'll be out in a minute.” I frowned, slightly sad at the fact that he was going to cover his beautiful, tanned skin. I took a seat on the big, cozy couch and grabbed the throw blanket to lay over my legs to keep warm.?
“Oh, and Paige?” he hollered from down the hallway. I turned my head to look back at him when he gazed in my direction with that devilish grin of his and he added, “I told you I’d invite you inside on the second date.”
Smiling back at him, I said, “Oh is that what this is now? A date?”
“Nah, baby girl, you’ll know when you're on a real date with me. This is just a regular day in the life.” And with that, he continued down the hallway to get changed, leaving me stunned. He wasn’t trying to be romantic; this is just how Declan was.
Only seconds went by before he came back out with hardly any clothes on. He traded the towel for a pair of gray sweatpants, and fuck, if that didn’t make me weak.?
“I thought you were getting dressed? Seems like you may have forgotten something.”?I stared at his chest, silently praising the fact that he left his shirt off.
“Does me walking around without a shirt on make you nervous, Paige?”That and your ability to walk around with that alpha man persona, yes.
“I’d say it's just more of a distraction, really,” I replied with a long look up and down his torso, not even trying to hide it this time.?
He walked over to the couch after making up some tea, setting two mugs on the table in front of me. Sitting down next to me, not much space left between us, he took the blanket that was draped over me and covered both of our legs with it. With allthe confidence in the world, he pulled my legs onto his lap and rested his hand on the back of my calf.
I was a nervous wreck on the inside and Declan was giving that confident, alpha man energy that made my panties wet just thinking about it.
My body had a way of reacting to his touch. Even the most innocent of touches. It was heating up in here and I couldn’t tell if it was the tea, the fireplace, or this sexy ass man with his hands on my legs right now.
“I have to be honest with you, Paige. If you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to have a hard time holding back from kissing you.” This fake arrangement that we had going on was quickly taking a turn. Suddenly feeling all too real.
I didn’t want him to hold back.
I gravitated toward him.
I found myself wanting his company, his safety, his touch. What if we didn’t have to fake it when Logan was around? What if we made this legitimate with no question about it? After all, the way I was feeling at the moment, none of it was fake.
When I spottedPaige down by the creek looking for me, I was pleasantly surprised. What shocked me even more was how many times I blatantly caught her checking me out tonight. But there was no way I was going to stop her. This game of pretend dating we played in public was never fake for me. The moment I saw her, she was on my radar and this was all an excuse to get to know her better.
I was done with her taking my flirting as a joke. I needed her to know she was the only one I was thinking about. That I honestly couldn’t get her off my mind.
Especially after she made herself come to the thought of me. I think we both knew there was an obvious attraction, and now that the lines were blurred, why couldn’t we cross over those lines completely?
She wasn’t giving off the vibe that she would reject me, which only made me gravitate more toward her. I still didn’t know if she was home for good or if she was even interested in a relationship, but I’d deal with diving into those conversationslater. I’d probably be the one broken-hearted at the end of this, but if anyone was worth a broken heart, it was Paige.
I didn’t want to hold back how I was feeling anymore. I told her I was tempted to kiss her, and she didn’t budge when the words slipped off my tongue. Instead, she looked at me with her damn lip being pulled between her teeth like she was thinking the same thing I was. She sat so close to me, with her white sweatshirt that slipped off her shoulder, exposing just enough for me to see a black, lace bra strap.?
Moving my hand slowly up her calf to her thigh, I gave her leg a small squeeze. My control was slipping like sand right through my fingertips. I had to have her.
Her breath hitched in surprise when my hands found her hips, pulling her legs over me so she was straddling me. In one smooth move, I had her right where I wanted her. We both sat in silence, staring into each other’s eyes with the sound of our heavy breathing being the only thing you could hear.?
