“Let me get the check,” Alex said. He paid the bill, along with a generous tip, and they got up.
“I can’t believe we were talking for… almost five hours,” Grace said, adding up the time in her mind.
“Me neither,” Alex agreed. “So, can I drop you at home? We can share a taxi. Neither of us should be driving at this point.”
“I live far away,” Grace said, wrinkling her nose. “But it’s a beautiful evening, and this is a nice neighborhood. Maybe wecan walk a little before we say goodbye.” She was just prolonging the evening, and Alex must have known it, too, but he nodded.
“Sounds great.”
They left the bar. Outside, it was still warm, but the breeze had a hint of a chill to it. The streetlights were bright, but they could still make out the outlines of a few constellations far overhead. They strolled down the street, side by side, their shoulders brushing occasionally.
“If you could go anywhere on vacation,” Grace said idly, “where would you go?”
“Norway,” Alex answered instantly.
“Really? I’d go to Hawaii. I love the beach, even though I go all the time here.”
“Really. I get plenty of sun and sand here. I want somewhere cold and snowy where I can see the Northern Lights.”
“Why don’t you go?” Grace asked. “I’m sure you have enough money.” Then she laughed. “But you wouldn’t want to leave the company, even for a few days. Right?”
“Right.”
“It was a silly question.”
“Not at all.”
Alex stopped and turned to her, so Grace stopped, too. They were standing beneath a streetlight, bathed in its warm yellow light. It illuminated Alex’s strong jawline dusted with a hint of five-o’clock shadow, his vivid blue eyes behind round glasses that looked at her with singular focus, and his slightly messy hair. He wore a suit from his networking event and lookedextremely handsome. Grace’s heartbeat sped up. They were very close together, though they weren’t touching—unlike when they’d danced.
“Thank you,” Alex said.
“For what?” Grace’s voice came out a little strained, which she hoped he couldn’t hear.
“For tonight,” Alex said. “It felt like a vacation, and I never take vacations.”
“Yeah.” Grace nodded. “I feel the same way.”
“I…” Alex sighed and ran a hand through his hair, causing some of it to stick up straight. “Grace, would you like to go home now?”
“No,” Grace said. “I really don’t.”
“I would like very much to kiss you,” Alex said. “And I know it might cause problems, but?—”
Grace raised a hand to stop him. “Don’t think about that right now. Only think about what you want. Right here. Right now. What do you want?” She emphasized each word in the question, her eyes never leaving Alex’s.
“You,” Alex said, and the single word was enough to turn Grace’s knees to jelly.
“Okay,” she said, very softly. And then they were kissing. It was the kind of passionate, world-stopping kiss that Grace had only read about or seen in movies. It took her breath away with the force of a sonic boom and made her so dizzy that she leaned against Alex for balance. He was gentle yet thorough, kissing herwith every bit of the perfectionism that made him so good at his job.
His hands rested on her waist, lightly at first, then pulling her closer with the same kind of hunger Grace felt growing inside her. She wrapped her hands around his shoulders, then slid her fingers into his hair to pull his head closer and deepen the kiss. Alex moaned into her mouth, and Grace melted against him. She wanted to be closer. She wanted more. They were only kissing, and already, it was everything.
“Grace,” Alex whispered, her name sounding like it was being spoken aloud for the first time.
“Yes?” Grace asked.
He kissed her again, more deeply this time, before he answered. “We’re in a public place.”
“Yes,” Grace replied, laughing softly as he hugged her against him.
