Silence falls between us.
“You really like to put a girl on the spot … huh?” she adds.
I chuckle. “Are you really asking,” I say slowly, “or are you trying to distract me?”
Her smile is small. Dangerous.
“I think you already know the answer.”
I drag a hand down my face. “You picked a hell of a moment to test that.”
Her eyes flick downward, then back up to the screen. “I wanted to know if you say things like that … or if you actually follow through.”
The challenge hits low in my gut.
“I don’t make empty threats,” I say. “Especially not about you.”
Her breath catches. I hear it through the speaker.
“So, you were really going to …” She trails off.
“Yes.”
The word lands heavy between us.
She shifts again, clearly aware she’s being watched. “And now?”
I lean back against the arm of the couch, adjusting the phone so she can see more of me than before. Not everything. Not yet.
“Now,” I say, “I’m trying to decide if I want you to watch.”
Her lips part. “Were you thinking about me when I texted you?”
“I was,” I reply. “Still am.”
Her voice drops. “What exactly were you thinking about?”
I let my gaze roam her face slowly, deliberately.
“The way you sounded when I touched you. The way you went quiet right before you didn’t.”
Her pupils blow wide. “That’s not fair,” she whispers.
I smile. “You’re the one who called.”
She swallows. “If I hang up right now … would you stop?”
“No.” The answer comes too fast. “But,” I add, “you wouldn’t get to see it.”
That does it.
She inhales sharply. “Then don’t hang up.”
I don’t say anything at first. I just look at her.
Wet hair clings to her shoulders. The towel is secure, but barely. She looks soft like this. Open. Completely unaware of how badly it’s undoing me.
Her brows knit together. “You’re staring.”
