His smile was radiant, and I could swear his eyes held extra moisture. He pulled my hand up to his lips and brushed it with a kiss that shot lightning through my nervous system. I could’ve sworn that sparks would leap from my skin at any moment.
So… I guess I’m dating Grey.
Chapter 27
Date Night
We finished our dinner and made our way out of Linda’s. I felt slightly buzzed around the corners of my eyes, but it wasn’t enough to do anything but make me a bit warmer. Glancing at my phone, I was shocked to see that the night was still young. Winter seriously threw my perception of time out of whack. It was only eight.
“You want to go do something fun?” Grey asked before we’d made it more than a couple of steps outside the restaurant.
I blushed, uncertain what he meant byfun. “That depends. What did you have in mind?”
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to sleep with him again tonight. No, I did. But I wasn’t sure that Ishouldif the opportunity arose. Part of me still hadn’t decided if he was reallyin this, despite recent evidence pointing to the fact. And if he wasn’t, I had to protect myself from more excruciating heartbreak. That meant keeping things in our pants until I was certain. Apparently, I’d thrown up one too many walls during our brief period of radio silence. I could forgive, but I was still reluctant to trust.
Grey’s playful smirk danced across his lips. “Well, I was going to suggest ice-skating. What were you—”
“Ice-skating sounds lovely,” I said in a rush to keep him from finishing his question—even though I’d never been skating in my life.
He grinned. “Perfect. I already booked the rink.”
I furrowed my brow. “How long have you been planning tonight?”
“A day or so,” he said.
I didn’t trust the mischief in his eyes.
“Of course, if you’d turned me down at dinner, tonight would’ve ended much more abruptly.”
“Would you have been mad?”
Grey laughed. “No, not at all. Hurt? Yes. But I would’ve respectfully walked you home and told you good night. But now…” He shrugged. “Now tonight can be whatever we want it to be.”
“And you want it to be ice-skating.”
“Ice-skating with myboyfriend,” he corrected with heavy emphasis on the last word.
Instead of cringing like I probably would’ve a few months ago, my heart fluttered. “I’ll have to get used to that.”
“What?” he asked.
“Being someone’s boyfriend.”
“I thought you’ve dated people before,” he said with a confused look. “Weren’t you going out with Pepper or whatever her name was?”
I gave him a playful nudge. “Her name was Piper. And we went on a few dates, but we neverdated. I don’t think I’ve ever been close enough to anyone to be a boyfriend.”
“Then, I’ll consider myself lucky.” Grey was suddenly very close.
The air around us was freezing, and the heat radiating between us urged me to move closer to him. It rose in a mist from our parted lips. His brown eyes bored into mine, reflectingmy desire back at me. I didn’t wait for him to kiss me. With a sudden surge of confidence, I planted my lips on his, enjoying his small, surprised gasp when I did. I smiled into the kiss, letting it linger for a moment more before breaking away.
“So, are we going skating, or what?” I asked.
Grey cleared his throat and slid a hand into his jeans pocket in an attempt to hide the noticeable bulge my kiss had caused. “Yeah, let’s go.”
He grabbed my had with his free one, and we walked across campus, ignoring the questioning looks from passersby. I’d never held hands with someone in public before. Public displays of affection had always made me feel too exposed, like everyone’s eyes were glued to me. But none of that mattered, though I was much more likely to get looks holding Grey’s hand than ever before. Maybe it was because, for the first time in my life, holding hands with someone felt unbelievably right.
We made our way to the skating rink—a building just off campus that I’d managed to avoid for the past two and half years. Grey didn’t let go of my hand until he stepped up to the counter to rent our skates from a very bored-looking blond girl. She blinked slowly in response to him asking how her night was going. Rather than linger in awkward silence, he swiped his card to pay.
