Her kiss is intoxicating. My dick throbs against the fly of my jeans—too confining—and I pull her tighter against me. I need her to feel what she does to me. She groans into my mouth, our mutual desire and attraction palpable.
Someone coughs and clears their throat.
Rachel is the first to pull back, pupils dilated, her skin a deep shade of crimson. I look around, suddenly aware of my surroundings.
Shit!
We both take a step back.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Rachel,” says Sophie with her bag in hand, keys out, before greeting me.
“I was just leaving,” I reply, moving to open the door. I usher for Sophie to go first and don’t look back as I follow her out.
RACHEL
He didn’t even say bye when he made a hasty getaway. What the fuck just happened?
I slump into a chair and cover my face with my hands. My skin is hot against my palms. I’ve never been kissed so thoroughly in my life, and then he couldn’t get out of here quick enough. Why do I always do this—get mixed up with the wrong guys? I let out a frustrated moan just as the bell rings at the door.
I quickly look up, expecting to see Michael from next door. Charlie wanted to make sure Soph and me had someone else present when we were locking up, and since Michael closes later than us, he agreed.
But it’s not him staring back at me—it’s Olly. I stand, my legs heavy underfoot. He crowds the doorway, and I continue to stare at him.
“That shouldn’t have happened,” he blurts out. And I want the ground to swallow me whole. “I mean, it should have but not like that.”
I can’t keep up with him. “Let’s just forget about it, Oliver,” I say and turn away from him. I don’t back down to anyone, but for him, I find myself breaking my own rules.
I hear him approach. “Don’t act like it was nothing.”
I turn, surprised to find him mere inches from me. Whatever rebuke on the tip of my tongue now forgotten, I tilt my head back to meet his eyes.
His hand reaches for my face, and his fingers caress my cheek. My stomach flips over. “What I meant was, that isn’t how I wanted the first time I kissed you to go.” His hand moves to the back of my neck, holding me soft and yet firm. “Not in the middle of your workplace. Don’t get me wrong—it was kaleidoscopic. But I at least want to take you out first. Show you what a real date should be like.”
I’m breathy when I find a response. “You want to take me out?”
He nods, leaning down, his lips so close. “Yes,” he breathes.
“Okay.” His lips cover mine, but just as quickly, they’re gone.
“Just tell me when.”
“Tonight,” I reply before I can think better of it. Molly is at Marcus’s.
“What time shall I pick you up?”
“Seven-thirty.”
His lips transform into a huge smile, and I can’t help but mirror it. He walks backwards without taking his eyes off me until he reaches the door. “I look forward to it,” he says, leaving me in equal parts excitement and shock.
Chapter Twenty-Two
RACHEL
I’m pissed off.
Marcus was meant to have Molly tonight, but no. He’s let her down—again. “Molly, you’re not seeing Daddy. He has work tonight,” I lie.
She smiles, picks up her stuffed toy, and carries on playing. It worries me that she doesn’t seem phased anymore. She shouldn’t be used to it—her father disappointing her—not at four. “Bath, book and bed,” I say walking over to scoop her up. She giggles when I tickle her.
