With his stare on my lips, I knew he was talking about kissing me.
“And why do youhaveto?”
“Because I can’t go another second without tasting you.”
I was going to warn him about my lip gloss and the sticky mess it would leave on his mouth, but he didn’t give me a chance. I didn’t even have the opportunity to get out a single word before his lips were on mine.
This embrace was far different from all the times we’d kissed in the past. The previous had been foreplay. Breathy exhales and bodies aligned, hands that couldn’t stay still.
But not now.
This was need.
Hunger.
A satisfaction, like he was placing water in my mouth after days of being parched.
And when he pulled back, his hand lingered on my jaw, his thumb on my bottom lip. “I didn’t forget how good you tasted, but I really needed the reminder.”
It took a moment for the air to move through my lungsagain. For me to come down from a high so overwhelming that I’d stopped breathing.
I wouldn’t mention to him that it was the best kiss I’d ever had.
But something told me he could see that on my face.
“Where are you taking me?” I finally asked.
He looked at his watch. A vintage Rolex that screamed appreciation for the brand, not someone trying to prove his wealth. “Sunset will be in an hour. Would you like to watch it?”
I nodded. “I would love to.”
“How about we watch it from the sky?”
THIRTY-FIVE
COLSON
“Ican’t believe we’re all the way up here and that I’m actually doing this.” Sophie’s eyes connected with mine. “And that you arranged this”—she took a breath—“for me.” She held the rim of the basket we stood in, beneath the large, colorful parachute of the hot-air balloon.
For the last twenty or so minutes we’d been up in the air, there were times when she glanced down at the three thousand feet or so below us and times she focused on the sky, but more often than not, she was looking at me.
“I never want you to forget our first date.” I held her cheek as pieces of her hair flew against the back of my hand. “I thought a front-row seat in the clouds would accomplish that.”
“You think?” She smiled and laughed.
“Look at that.” I nodded toward the sun as it dipped below the horizon.
Within several minutes of it being gone, the baby blue deepened to a light navy in some spots. A bold golden huecame through the center of the sky, and where the azure and yellow met, there were streaks of magenta and lavender, even a bright orange.
“I could stare at it forever,” she whispered.
And I could stare at you for just as long.
My head shook as I finally lifted my gaze and focused on the sky. But it didn’t stay there long. It couldn’t. There was something about Sophie that drew me right back.
The conversation at my house had changed everything. The way I looked at this woman, the way I processed the information I’d learned about her. How I felt. What I wanted.
Dating wasn’t an option. It was a need.
