But Responsible Emily would have left hours ago and missed out on the best night she’s had in years. And then I wouldn’t be standing in the snow with a beautiful man looking at me like I’m the only thing he wants under his Christmas tree.
So, really, there’s only one thing left to do.
One obstacle left between me and a steamy night with the sexiest man I’ve ever met in real life.
“I think the guest place is a no-brainer, but there’s one thing I need first,” I say, my voice wobbling as I step closer, bringing my hands to his chest.
“What’s that, love?” he asks, the huskiness in the words giving me the confidence to slide my arms around his neck.
“A kiss, silly,” I whisper.
His lips curve as he cups my face in one big hand. “Of course. You’re right, how silly of me.”
Then his lips are on mine, and I instantly know that the world will never be the same.
My world, anyway…
I’ve been kissed before, obviously. And in my share of romantic places. I’ve been kissed at a swanky rooftop party on New Year’s Eve and on the Brooklyn Bridge at the end of a hazy summer night. I was once even kissed at the top of the EmpireState Building by a man who’d just said he loved me for the first time.
But I’ve never been kissed like I’m something worth stopping time for.
Like I’m a treasure a man can’t bear to think of sharing…
Olly’s teeth graze my bottom lip, and I gasp, my fingers tangling in his hair as the kiss grows hotter, deeper.
All of a sudden, something inside me cracks. All the grind of the past year, all the nights choosing working over living, all the times I’ve watched other people heading out for fun on the weekend, only to feel I didn’t deserve fun until I levelled up. Until I proved that I could be as exceptional as the rest of my family. As exceptional as Dad is as a history professor and Mom is at selling real estate, and Isabelle is on the ice.
But right now, I don’t care aboutbeingexceptional; I just want to feel.
Exceptionally.
I want to drown in this man’s kiss, melt beneath his touch, get lost and found in the electrical field we create together, and finally feel what it’s like to throw caution to the wind and burn.
I’ve never burned before, but tonight…
I’m already on fire, and we’re still completely clothed in the middle of a snowstorm.
When we finally break apart, we’re both breathing hard.
Then, I grin.
And he grins.
And then we’re kissing again with even more wild abandon than before, giggling and moaning and exhaling eager, can’t-wait-to-touch-you sighs as we stumble back the way we’ve come.
Back toward his guest flat.
Where we’re going to be alone.
Finally,alone.
A very happy Christmas to me…
Chapter Five
OLIVER
The snow doesn’t slow us down.
