He watches me intently. “I’m a pretty serious guy, so when I tell you something, you can be guaranteed I mean it.”
I step inside expecting him to move so I can pass him, but he doesn’t, and I end up in his arms. He embraces me while shuffling me to the side. Backing me up against the wall with one arm around me, he closes the door with the other.
“Hi,” he says in a low rumble. He lets me go, only to place both hands on the wall either side of my body, effectively trapping me.
His face is so close to mine, and his scent is all over me. Unable to form a coherent thought, I say the first thing that comes to mind. “Uh, where’s Sean?” Because surely he should be here right
now rescuing me.
Luke’s lips curl into a sexy grin.
Oh, no.
That’s not fair.
That sexy look needs to go.
“He’s at my mum’s tonight. A sleepover with Grandma. And Paris is out, so we have the place to ourselves.”
Jesus, why did I not ask all these questions before I came?
Mental note—know Luke’s family’s schedule better than they do.
I give Luke what I hope is a dirty look. “You need to take a step back there, buddy. This kind of move goes against our whole friend’s only thing we’ve got going on.”
His eyes search mine, and he doesn’t move. I endure a good ten minutes of hell before he finally steps back. Oh, okay, so it’s more like thirty seconds, but honestly, does the man not understand the word ‘friends’?
Pushing his fingers through his hair, he says, “I’m dying here, Callie.” He reaches for my top and grips the bottom of it. “And I know it’s not fair to you for me to say that because it’s my fault we’re stuck in this friend zone, but I want you to know how much I want you.”
“I’m dying, too. But as much as I’d like to forget we agreed to this, I can’t.”
“I know. And I won’t ever pressure you for sex, but surely friends can kiss?”
I lift a brow. “I’ve never had a friend that I’ve kissed before.”
“Didn’t your mum ever tell you it’s good to try new things?” His eyes just won’t let me go, and his grip on my top has tightened.
Two can play this game. “No, my mum always told me to perfect something. I think I should work on perfecting my current behaviour.”
He smirks. “Well, you know, the only way to master a new skill is to push yourself. The harder something is that you keep practicing, the better you’ll get. I can help you with that.”
“I personally think it’s better not to work with those you know. Too many possibilities for problems to occur. Perhaps I need to find someone else to practice with.”
His eyes flare, and he lets my top go so he can pull my body to his. I quickly try to press my hands against his chest to push away, but his hold is so tight I can barely wiggle. “You never need to find someone new,” he growls. “Ever,” he adds with force.
Oh my.
I like this Luke. All growly and fierce. My lady bits really like this Luke. That growl hit all the right spots. But damn, now I want that kiss as much as he does.
This complicated dating thing is the devil. I’ve never been so conflicted over something in my life.
“How about you feed me and we can go from there?” I suggest. I just need a moment to unscramble myself.
He doesn’t let me go straight away. But then he drops his arms and nods. “Okay, baby.”
He’s called me that twice now and each time it unleashed a whole new wave of longing through me. He has this low, gravelly way of wrapping his lips around that word that I like. And the fact he doesn’t say it all the time makes it feel special.
I follow him into the kitchen and now that I’m not trapped in Luke’s scent, I smell the dinner he’s cooked. “You made homemade pizza?” I ask as I watch him open the oven.