They stared at each other for a long moment.
Finally, mercifully, the elevator doors opened.
They rode the elevator to the twenty-first floor and Josh led Paige down a brightly lit hall to his apartment. He’d spent the entire subway ride trying to downplay her expectations, so she had been picturing the standard twenty-something bachelor pad: few decorations, hand-me-down furniture, the faint but unmistakable odor of old sweaty socks, and everything dusty or dingy. But no, Josh’s apartment was clean and neat, if sparse. The front door opened to a wide hallway. Josh led Paige through to an open-plan kitchen and living room. The kitchen counter sparkled like it had never been used. A big leather sofa sat across from a wall-mounted TV. There were several bookcases and a small table shoved to the side, which seemed to be the place Josh dropped his mail, and even that was sorted into neat stacks. There were still unpacked boxes, granted, but the apartment looked like an adult lived here, and not a college student.
“You want a drink, or…?” Josh hooked his thumb toward the fridge.
Paige didn’t want to break the tension that had started building in the elevator bay, worried she’d lose her nerve. She scrunched her face into what she hoped was a seductive look and said, “Maybe you should show me the bedroom.”
Josh grinned. “I love how you think. The bedroom is right this way.”
The bed was a mattress and box spring on a cheap metal frame, and it was unmade, but there was no way Josh would have anticipated having a woman here tonight. A closet door was ajar, and there was a plain dark dresser in the corner and a matching nightstand next to the bed, but that was really it as far as furniture went. This room would look nice if the bed had a headboard, or if there was a rug or some art on the walls.
“See?” said Josh. “I told you.”
“It’s not that bad. Believe me, I’ve seen worse.” Paige sighed, hearing what she’d just said. How many men’s bedrooms must she have seen to make such a comparison? “Wow, you must think I’m the biggest slut.”
“I don’t. At all.”
“I feel like I’ve spent half the night talking about all the terrible men I’ve dated.”
“Yes, but I came out better by comparison, no? And you’re here with me now. I feel pretty lucky.”
Paige crossed the room and put her hands on Josh’s shoulders. The more they talked, the more she fretted about what she was doing. So, she pressed her lips against his. He opened his mouth and moaned softly, like a man who had finally gotten a glass of water after crossing the desert. He tasted like whisky, and his lips were warm and promising. Kissing was enough of a distraction to lessen the fluttering of Paige’s nerves. She decided to stop worrying and throw herself into this.
“You feel lucky?” she said. “You’re about to get lucky.”
He burst into laughter but didn’t let go of his clutch on her waist. “That was a corny line.”
Paige laughed with him. “I just heard it.”
“It was amazing.” Josh kissed her. “You’re awesome. Please say more cheesy things while we have sex.”
“Are you joking?”
“No. Sex should be fun. We should be able to laugh. Don’t you think so?”
“Totally. All right. I’ll try to think of sexy puns.”
“Or not. I don’t want you to invest mental energy on sex jokes if your focus is, uh, being pulled elsewhere. Do what feels natural. As long as we’re having fun.”
Paige smiled. “We’re having a lot of fun. Kissing you is fun.”
“Kissingyouis fun. I can think of some things that will be evenmorefun.”
“Mmm, I agree. Because I’m guessing based on all this…” Paige ran her hands over Josh’s chest. “…you’re hiding a pretty great body under this sweatshirt.”
“You haven’t caught me in my sexiest clothes today, it’s true.”
“I bet you look great in a suit.”
“I look amazing in a suit. I look even more amazing wearing nothing at all.”
Paige couldn’t wait to verify that, but she decided to play a little coy and raised an eyebrow. “Awfully confident of you.”
“I bet you look thebestwearing nothing at all. In fact, I think we should test that theory.”
“Interesting. And how do you propose we do that?”
