For the next hour and a half, we talked about our childhoods, growing up on opposite coasts. We compared our high school years, and Jacey shared with me a glimpse of the pain she’d felt, losing her father when she was fifteen. I told her how I’d chosen West Point because I’d admired the ideals embodied there. We discussed our favorite foods, the television shows we’d binge-watched recently, and the books that had changed our lives.
When the diner began to close around us, I paid the bill and we left, getting into my car. Jacey turned to me, twisting a lock of her hair around one finger.
“Thank you for tonight, Owen. I can’t remember when I’ve had more fun.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever spent this much time talking to a woman,” I admitted. “Or even to any of my friends. You’re easy to be around, Jacey.” I reached out to lace our fingers together. “I wish I could take you somewhere with me so we could be alone and the night didn’t have to end. But my room in the barracks isn’t an option.”
“And I kind of doubt Kade would be all right with me inviting you into my bedroom at their house,” she sighed.
“I guess that I’ll have to settle for kissing you good-night here.” I pulled her toward me, feeling a swell of both contentment and longing when she sighed against my neck. “God, you feel good. I could hold you like this forever.”
She lifted her face. “I’d stay with you forever.”
My heart thudded against my ribs, and I framed her face with my hands, angling my head as I feathered a kiss over her lips. With a soft touch of my tongue, I persuaded her to open to me, swallowing her groan of pleasure as it washed over me.
I wished that we had all the time in the world tonight. I wanted to kiss her into oblivion, taking myself along for the ride, too. I wanted to lay her out, sink into her and lose all sense of the rest of world, existing only for the two of us.
But none of that was an option just now. Tonight, I had to be content with what we had here. Still, I couldn’t help covering one of her full breasts with my hand, kneading it gently, feeling her nipple harden beneath my palm.
“You’re so beautiful, Jacey. I wish we had someplace to go.”
“We’ll figure out something.” Her voice was husky as she arched her neck, pushing into my touch. “We have to, because now we know.”
“What do we know?” I ventured my hand under the neckline of her shirt, slipping my fingers over the silky cup of her bra.
“We know that we have more than just a spark. We have that something extra, too—the connection that means we want more than just the sexy times. As my mom would say, we’re compatible.”
I ghosted a kiss over her forehead. “I definitely agree with that assessment. We have the spark and the compatibility. The full package.” My fingers toyed with the stiffened bud of her nipple, and Jacey hummed her encouragement.
“Since we’re both on the same page, what are we going to do about it?” She sounded more than a little bit breathless as she wriggled closer to my touch.
“I suggest you have dinner with me Friday night.” I sucked her earlobe between my lips. “And then maybe we could ... find some place to give this spark room to grow.”
“I’m all for fanning the flames.” Jacey insinuated her hand between our bodies and cupped my aching dick. I ground my teeth together in exquisite frustration. “But pretty soon I just might self-combust. Your hands on me are making me crazy.”
I rested my forehead against hers. “I know. But don’t worry. I have some ideas.”
