Neither one of us has brought up last night. Our first kiss… And maybe our last. We can’t avoid talking about it because, whether we want to admit it or not, everything changed the second his lips touched mine.
Without looking up, I can feel Owen’s eyes on me—probably thinking the same thoughts as me.
I swallow and clear my throat, the words catching in my chest.
“Owen… I—” I hesitate. “I want to apologize.”
I pause and look up to find his brows pulled together, confusion flickering across his face.
“For what?”
I fidget with my hands.
“For last night,” I say quietly. “For… coming on too strong or making things weird.”
Get it out, Meadow.
Let it all out and get this over with.
“I definitely had too much to drink, and I just—” I shake my head, rushing through it now. “I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable or pressured or—”
“Wait.”
Owen cuts me off, his tone firm but not harsh.
He zones in on me, narrowing his eyes to little slits like he’s trying hard to understand what I just said.
“You’re apologizing to me for last night?”
I nod.
“Yeah,” I answer.
“Meadow… are you out of your goddamn mind?” he asks in disbelief. “Why on earth would you apologize?”
Oh.
“Last night was one of the best nights of my life,” he continues, his eyes darting between mine. “Do you have any idea how long I’ve wanted to kiss you?”
Do you have any idea how long I’ve wanted to kiss you?
I stop breathing at his confession becauseholy shit.
Part of me is starting to believe that he’s also been feeling the same painful yearning that I have all these years.
His emerald eyes drop to my mouth for a beat before lifting back to mine.
“Do you have any idea how much I want to kiss you right now?”
Oh God.
I want that too. I want that so bad. But if he were to kiss me right now, I would die of embarrassment. I probably taste like absolute death right now.
I swallow thickly, utterly stunned by his confession.
“Uh, yeah,” I start awkwardly, “that’s not happening. I would probably poison you to death from the smell of my breath alone.”
He leans back as I’ve offended him.
