“I want a kiss.” I tilt my chin up, aiming for brazen, though the evening sun is in my eyes. I’m definitely squinting. “A real one. No thumbs this time.”
Said thumbs are drawing slow, teasing circles on my hips. And if any part of me still doubted that Jesse meant it when he said he wanted me the other day—well. New evidence has surfaced. Exhibit A is digging into my belly.
“People might see,” Jesse murmurs, and my heart sinks. I go to move away, but his grip on my hips tightens, holding me in place. He lowers his voice. “You sure you want to be seen kissing a guy like me?”
Gah!
My heart feels like it’s been chafed with sandpaper.
“Yes,” I tell him, hating every word that Franklin said back there. What does he know, anyway? “Yes.I’m super sure. I should be so lucky.”
The smile that Jesse gives me could light up the town’s switchboard, his dark hair tugged by the wind. When his lips press to mine, they taste like salt, and they’re just as plush as they look on screen.
Somewhere across the parking lot, an empty drink can scrapes over the concrete, tumbled along by the sea air. A strand of my hair sticks to my lips, and I swipe it away, then go back in for more.
“Mmph,” I say. I’ve never felt so warm and gooey. I’m a human fondue.
Jesse tilts his head and kisses me harder, moving his hands to cradle my face. And it’s so similar to the screen kiss—the way he’s touching my cheeks, the way his eyelashes cast shadows on his face—but it couldn’t be more different, too. The brush of his beard makes my toes curl.
During those takes, I was stiff and awkward, with a sharp knife of need in my belly.
Now I’m relaxed and melting, sighing into his mouth.
Oh, the need’s still there. Believe me, it’s still there. But it’s like he’s coaxing a slow burn out of me, starting a fire that will smolder for the next few hours until he’s ready to bank it into an inferno.
“You’re a hell of a woman, Darla.” Jesse presses the words against my lips. Says them like a confession.
“You—” I break off.You too, I nearly said. Brain cells: overloaded. “I can’t wait for tonight,” I settle on instead.
Jesse’s palm spreads over my lower back, firm and possessive. Every nerve in my body crackles in response. “Me neither.”