Page 33 of The Photo
It’s only when he slides a strap free from his shoulder, I notice his backpack. “I’ll give you this…” He pulls out a massive shell. “If you send me some photos of last night as a keepsake.”
“Is that the shell from Rio?” I brush my fingertips over the grooves.
He nods. “It reminds me of you. Except, I’d rather have something more graphic to add to my spank bank for while you're gone.” At this point, I’m almost certain my cheeks are on fire. The pictures he took aren’t graphic by any means, they’re mostly snapshots of us post sex, with the odd simple body part.
“Perhaps I’ve deleted them already?” I say, barely able to contain the rush.
“You haven’t,” he states, winking with an observant smirk. “Give me your phone, Rowan.”
I drag it free from my pocket and present it to him. His lips curl when he finds every single picture saved to my favorites folder.
“Don’t worry, they’re private,” I confirm.
“Our eyes only.” He gives me a quick grin. “I’ve added my number to your contacts and assigned this photo.” It’s one of my favorites. He’s kissing me with his eyes open, his tongue visible and his fingertips pressing into my cheek. It depicts passion and depth. Lust and longing.
I sigh. “I love that one.”
“If I asked you to come back with me, would you?” he questions.
“Yes,” I reply, with no doubt. “But it’s not possible. I have to finish college.”
His brow furrows. “It’s remarkable how your pupils expand and retract and like their breathing.” Light strokes tease flyaway strands, smoothing them into place. Tingles begin again. My pulse races. “Every time you look at me, they get bigger.”
“They are rather unruly. It happens when I see donuts too.”
“And seashells.”
“That’s a new thing.” I bite my bottom lip. “Who knew?”
“Hopefully, I’m number one on that list, that’s if there is a ranking system for that stuff?”
I meet his eyes, absorbed in our moment. “Without doubt, donuts fell to the number four spot overnight.”
“Oh yeah? What’s number three?” he asks.
“Seashells.”
“So what’s number two?”
I inhale in and let the words flow out with my exhale. “Your dick.”
“What? Only number two?” He scans his groin like his dick just snarled. “We both know it works. What could possibly be better than him?”
“You. You’re number one. All of you. The whole package.”
An odd look sparks behind his eyes. Noah grabs my wrist and tugs me into him. “How about a replay, so you don’t forget how good it was last night? One for the road.” There’s a mishmash of urgency and desperation in his tone.
If this guy knew how many occasions I’ve refreshed his social media feed over the past year, he would realize I'll never forget.
“How? Where?” I follow his gaze. There’s glass everywhere and nowhere private. In a flash he’s pulling me behind him, heading straight for the washrooms. “Wait? We can’t—”
I glance back to make sure my travel companions aren’t close by. Noah’s fingers tighten, and he yanks open a door. In a spin, I’m thrust into the small room with a toilet and a sink.
I’m startled and flustered. Too turned on to care. He takes the shell from me and drops it back into his backpack, then sets it down. With a gentle shove, he pushes me into the wall. His palm spreads over my left breast and squeezes. The other hand skims to my hip, and he shunts me into him. In a heartbeat, he’s kissing me, and in that beat of time, I couldn’t care less if I missed my flight.
His intoxicating lips drug me. I whimper when the prickly hair around his mouth grazes and burns. I’ve never felt so hungry for a man before or been at the receiving end of such a sensual, erotic kiss. They say lust can drive you mad, I now know this to be true.
The hand on my hip drifts to my waistline and tugs at my zipper. He grasps either side of my jeans and drags them down. As they lower, so does he. I stare at this gorgeous man, crouching at eye level to my panties.
