"So you're feeling better?"
He gave her a small smile. "I am, thanks."
Ryan reached over and gave her hand a small squeeze. It was a little thing, likely nothing. He was just a bit more touchy-feely than usual. Frankly, that was probably because she had given him that impulsive hug this morning. Really, what had she been thinking?
But Ryan wasn't one to initiate something like this. He must've noticed the strangeness of it as well. His hand lingered for a bit, but then he pulled it away in a quick move like he had suddenly realized he was touching her skin. He was definitely playing with fire, that was for sure — at least from Lucy's side of things. Because that simple touch felt like it had burned her, and then it was gone, replaced by a hockey player who turned away and uncomfortably shifted in his seat.
Ryan was staring out at the lake again, making Lucy think that was probably a good idea. Turn away, regroup, calm down. It was no big deal. All she had to do was clear off the dishes and head home.
"Hey—"
"So—"
They both spoke at the same time, both trying to cut the tension that had started to brew between them, or at least that's what Lucy had been trying to do. Ryan gave her a sheepish grin from his spot next to her at the table.
"Go ahead."
He was going to let her go first, and he genuinely sounded sincere about it. But she was just going to take a cop-out.
"Uh, I was going to ask if you wanted to take the dishes in," she said. "I thought maybe I could help you clean up."
"Right, yeah, totally."
Ryan's head started to bob nervously, like that's not at all what he expected her to say. Lucy could only give him a smile and stand up, reaching across the table to grab his plate.
"Can you get the glasses for me?"
"Yep."
His voice seemed stilted and restrained as he awkwardly stood. She watched as he quietly took both glasses in one of his big hands before walking to open the door with a free hand.
The cabin was quiet except for the low hum of a fan in the living room. Despite the humidity some days, her parents still refused to get an air conditioner for the place. Ryan had only turned on a light in the kitchen before they went out so the cabin was dark and cozy in the waning sunlight.
Lucy headed over to the kitchen, gently placing the dishes in the sink. She was going to get the glasses from Ryan, but he reached past her, placing them in the sink as well.
Ryan was too close and she could feel his warm breath on her cheek. He pulled his arm back slightly, grazing her breast by accident in the process. He was so close that if she had let go of herself for just a moment, she could easily be kissing him.
Instead, he kissed her first.
She was shocked for a moment. Ryan's lips were soft and warm but determined as he pressed them against her mouth. For as much as she wanted this — and she really wanted this — it still took her by surprise and her brain wasn't properly handling this new situation. It was quick and passionate and before she could even respond, he had pulled away.
Ryan's eyes looked at her, scanning her face for some sort of acknowledgment of what just happened. She seemed to be dizzy, her mind in a haze, only now realizing that she had braced herself against his muscular body, his hard chest under her fingers. She wasn't thinking straight, but no one could blame her for that. She had just been kissed by Ryan McCloud, Detroit Pirates defenseman and her friend's neighbor. A man who was almost a decade younger than her with a maturity level that matched his age. But there was nothing immature about what he had just done to her.
He took a step back with a panicked look on his face, and her fingers almost reached out instinctively to touch him again. She wanted to have her hands on him, but he was just out of reach now and it was frustrating her.
"I uh…" He took a deep breath, his eyes darting around the small kitchen, his arms hanging by his side. "I'm…I'm sorry."
"It's OK."
"I didn't mean to…I mean, I did mean to, but I just thought that…"
His voice trailed off and he put his head down to avoid looking at her. He was floundering, just like Lucy had yesterday morning when Ryan answered the door without a shirt on. She needed something to bring him back to her, to ground him again in this new reality in the kitchen, because it was a reality that she really liked. She didn't want to think too deeply about where this was going or what could ever happen between them or how a kiss could complicate their relationship.
Lucy took a step forward, invading his personal space, and he reacted by trying to step away from her. So she put her hands on his cheeks, forced him to look at her for a brief moment, and then she pulled him down and kissed him.
His response was the same as hers only a few seconds earlier — shock and hesitation. But then he responded to her, his arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her closer. She let her hands drift lower, pausing on his rock-hard chest as her fingers bunched up in his t-shirt to pull him closer. He moaned against her lips, and the sound sent shivers down her spine.
This was crazy. This was Ryan. She had never felt like this about Ryan back in Detroit. But now that this had started, she didn't want it to stop.
