“Everything I said came out wrong,” he blurted. Apparently, we weren’t going to wait until we were tipsy.
“Okay,” I said, waiting for him to say more.
He opened his mouth, hesitated, then ran a hand through his hair, making it even more wild. He took a few steps around my kitchen, then set down his beer bottle. “I’m not looking for anything serious. I’m only here three months. I’ve got the kids. I’ve got my gramps and his business to fix. I thought I needed to stomp out whatever might be between us. For both our sakes.”
“Okay,” I said again, still not completely ready to forgive him for the way he’d handled our conversation at the inn.
Greyson sighed and lifted his beer abruptly, taking a long drink. “Fuck. Look, I know I’m not good at this. I don’t make a habit of… this.”
“Apologizing?” I said with a half smile. “Or bringing booze over to innocent young girls after dark?”
He chuckled. I could see some of the building tension he felt melt away. “Both.”
Greyson lowered his eyes and his brows knitted together. After a moment, he walked closer to me and put his hand on my arm. “That kiss was supposed to be meaningless. I wanted to prove to myself that it was all nothing.”
“And?” I breathed. My freaking body was on overdrive. My heart was thumping like I’d just kicked John Wick’s puppy and spit on his goldfish.
“It wasn’t nothing. It was fucking incredible.” He inched closer and I could feel the heat of his breath against my forehead. I could practically feel the crackle of potential energy in the small space between us. “But it couldn’t be anything. It would have to just be casual.”
“I’m not looking for anything serious,” I said. It was almost entirely a lie, but I could learn to believe my own lie, couldn’t I? After all, I had a bright future ahead of me and a brand-new job opportunity. That should be my entire focus. Maybe something casual was just what I needed.
“It would have to be discreet,” he said, eyes searching mine.
I nodded. “I can be very sneaky. One time, my period came early in math class and I managed to sneak into the locker room. I snuck some spare clothes from the lost and found and nobody had any idea. And I’m talking too much,” I added in a whisper.
“I want you. But I can’t keep you,” he said.
My throat was tight and my stomach was doing flips. I nodded. “Like a really nice rental car.”
The corner of his mouth twitched into a temporary smile, but it faded quickly. He was devouring me with his eyes. “I’m too old for you.”
“Agree to disagree.”
There was that smile again.
Two heartbeats passed and then he bent to kiss my neck. His hand slid around my waist and then down to my rear. He cupped my ass hard, then ran his tongue up my neck to my jaw. He took in a shuddering breath, then stepped back and shook his head. “Fucking hell,” he hissed. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”
He looked like he was about to bolt, but I lunged forward and grabbed his arm. I felt like I was about to hyperventilate. I didn’t do this kind of thing. I wasn’t bold. I definitely wasn’t the confident, sexy girl I was about to pretend to be. “Wait.”
His eyes held mine with a touch of desperation, almost like he was hoping I’d find a way to convince him to stay.
“Don’t go. I can do everything you said. I can be casual. I can be discreet. It doesn’t have to be more than… Well,” I ran my tongue over my lips and his eyes fell to watch. “I want you,” I added in barely more than a whisper.
“Fuck,” he groaned. He rushed back toward me, plucking the beer from me and slamming it down on the counter as he kissed me and walked me toward the couch. My ass bumped into the back of the couch and my hands were in his hair. Our kiss was frantic. Hungry.
He slid his hand under my t-shirt and found my hard nipple. He dusted it with his thumb while he kissed me deeply. I moaned into his mouth, and it only made him more frantic. I could feel the hard shape of his erection against me. I bit his lip and pressed myself into him, grinding against his arousal as my own blossomed.
A phone rang from the counter, and he paused. He started kissing me again, but the second ring seemed to pull at him.
“It’s okay,” I said.
Greyson stepped back, eyes wild. His jaw ticked twice, then he walked over to look at his phone. “Fuck, it’s Katie.”
My stomach fell. His ex.
“I need to–”
“It’s okay.” I tried to smile casually, but I probably looked sex-crazed. I felt one touch away from orgasm, and he hadn’t even put so much as a finger below my waist yet.