We walked side by side, not talking. My hands were shoved deep in my pockets; hers were wrapped around herself, holding her coat closed against the chill.
At her car, she stopped and turned to face me. “Thank you for inviting me to dinner,” she said. “The food was great and the conversation was…” She paused, sighing with a wide smile.
“Same,” I said. “Same.”
“And for the record…” She stepped closer, enough that I could smell her perfume again. “I’m really glad we ran into each other today.”
“Harper,” I said in a near-whisper.
“Cole,” she replied.
“You think I could kiss you? It’s fine if you don’t want me to, but I’d really like to.”
She pondered the question, pausing for so long I thought she was going to say no. But then…
“Yes.”
I closed the distance between us, bringing a hand up to cup her face. Her skin warmed against my palm despite the cool air. Her eyes stayed on mine, dark and intent, until the moment I leaned in, then they fluttered closed.
The kiss began soft. Chaste. My lips against hers, asking the question though I already had the answer. Testing to see if this was real or if I had imagined the electricity between us all night.
She made a small sound in the back of her throat. Stepped even closer, moving her hands up my chest. I deepened the kiss, sliding my other hand around to the small of her back to pull her against me.
Harper opened her mouth; I tasted wine and want and something that felt dangerously close to need.
She kissed the way she did everything else—direct, confident, no hesitation. Her tongue met mine and I forgot about the cold, about the parking lot, about every reason this was complicated.
Her hands slid further north, around my neck. I backed her up against her car, felt her arch into me, heard her breath catch when I gave her a few seconds to breathe.
This was dangerous. This was reckless. This was everything I should not be doing in a public parking lot where anyone could see us.
The sudden vibration against my hip cut through everything. Then the alert—loud, insistent, and impossible to ignore.
“Fuck,” I said against her mouth.
“Saved by the bell, I guess,” Harper said, her voice breathless.
I finally stepped back, pulled the phone from my pocket, and checked the display. The screen showed:
L1 TRAUMA ALERT ED ETA 8 MIN AH
Level one trauma. Incoming in eight minutes. All hands on deck.
“Damn. I’m on call until midnight.”
“Go,” she said immediately. “Someone needs you.”
“I’m sorry?—”
“Cole. This is one instance where you’re with someone that understands your job. Go. I’m fine.”
She was beautiful. Flushed, lips slightly swollen from kissing, hair messed up from my hands. Beautiful but completely off-limits, and I had just kissed her anyway in a restaurant parking lot like a teenager who couldn’t control himself.
“To be continued,” I said.
“I know.”
I walked to my car, got in, started the engine, and pulled out of the parking lot, heading toward the hospital with her taste still on my lips and the feel of her body burned into my memory like a brand.
