She’s emphatic, and while I don’t completely agree with her that life would make a lot more sense if everyone was always completely honest, I love the way she believes in things and will fight to argue her point. I want to kiss her right now. My eyes drop to her lips, and my gaze lingers there until she stands.
“Oh no you don’t,” she mutters, running her fingers through her long, blonde hair. “You can’t look at my lips that way.”
She’s right. And my dick would agree because her lips are dangerous territory.
I stand and meet her gaze. “It’s hard not to look at them that way, baby.”
Her eyes widen, and she presses her hands against my chest. “No, no, no! Stop talking.”
I chuckle and raise my hands in surrender. “I won’t look at your lips anymore.”
She picks up her bag. “Good.”
I eye her bag slung over her shoulder. “Are you leaving?”
“Yeah, I have an article to write for work, and it’s my first real article, so I want it to be perfect.”
I frown. “Aren’t all your articles real?”
“I mean, it’s not just a story about local events. My boss asked if anyone wanted to write a piece about putting a sugar tax on soft drinks. It’s not due until the end of the week, but I want to put some time into research so I can back up my point of view.”
“Where do you stand on it?”
“I’m for it.”
I whistle low. “I look forward to reading it.”
She cocks her head. “You don’t believe in it?”
“I haven’t researched it or anything, but I wonder if there’s a hell of a lot more to be done in society to tackle this problem rather than simply taxing sugar consumption.”
“Oh, I’m sure there is, but surely every little part helps.”
“I don’t really think the parents who happily feed their children sugar-laden food will really blink at a slight increase in food. And adults happily throw cash at their addictions. They’ll yell and scream for a while, and it will possibly stop some, but overall, what does it teach people? I think it’s a bandage for a deeper wound in society.”
“Mmmm, I’m going to think about that a lot more,” she says with a smile. “You’re a smart man, Mr Hardy.”
I surprise her when I pull her close so our bodies press hard against each other. Her eyes widen as my face comes close, but I don’t kiss her. I rest my forehead against hers for a beat. “My lips are staying firmly over here, but I needed one last touch.” With a smack on her butt, I mutter, “Now go, before I lose the tiny speck of self-control I have left.”
After she leaves, I sit on the couch and rest my elbows on my knees. Dropping my face into my hands, I exhale my frustration. When I told her I had a tiny amount of self-control left, I was lying. Callie has no clue how much I want her. How could she when I’m only fully grasping the depth of it myself?
17
Callie
Luke: Come straight to the bar after work today.
Me: I see bossy Luke is in full swing.
Luke: Is argumentative Callie in full swing?
Me: Depends.
Luke: On what?
Me: What do I get out of coming to the bar?
Luke: Me.