I lift myself up on my toes and with a thundering heart, I pray I’m not making a total ass of myself. I let my hands slip up to Carter’s neck, but I can’t bring myself to go higher than his jaw.
The tingles in my abdo
men are going to explode into full-blown fireworks any second now.
I exhale slowly when my mouth reaches his ear. You can do it, Della.
“I accept your apology, but I need time. I’m not just going to jump into bed with you.”
Oh dear God, that sounds so lame.
He pulls me closer to him until I can feel his body heat warming mine.
“Take all the time you need,” he whispers against my cheek, and I swear this moment is so intense I can feel it between my legs, like a second heart beating.
He pulls slightly back until his mouth stops an inch from mine as if he’s waiting for me to pull away.
My stomach tightens and my heart races. My insides turn to mush but I force myself to not close the distance between us. I need to be sure that he’s not just saying these things, but that he actually means them.
“I should get you home,” he whispers.
With all my strength I pull free from his arms.
“I like the rain. I’ll walk. Have a good night, Carter.”
***
CARTER
I watch her walk away, sandals in her one hand.
I actually feel better now that I’ve had the chance to apologize. I’m not sure that she believes me, but at least I got to tell her how I feel.
I get in the car and slowly follow her home. There’s no way I’m just going to leave her. Before she walks into the apartment block, she turns and waves at me.
I sit outside her building wishing I had her number.
I suck at dating. Hell, I’ve never dated a girl. I’ve never had to date any of them for them to spread their legs. Not that it’s the reason I want to date Della. It’s different with Della and it scares the living shit out of me.
The next morning I grab two coffees before heading over to Della’s. So much for giving her time.
As I’m about to knock, the door swings open and Evie comes out.
“Hey, is Della home?”
“Yeah, be nice to her,” she warns me before taking off.
I walk inside and shut the door behind me. When I walk into the living room, I freeze, drinking in the sight in front of me.
Della is lying upside down on the couch, with headphones on. She’s bouncing her feet on the back of the couch, singing something about pixels and ratios.
I walk closer and standing next to her, I smile as I watch her. It takes her a few minutes to become aware of someone else in the room. Her eyes fly open and she scrambles up when she sees me.
Yanking the earphones off, a deep blush creeps up her neck.
“What are you doing here?”
“I brought you coffee. It’s a little cold though.”