Page 38 of Something About September

His lips were warm and sure, tasting faintly of mint and a little bit of beer. His kiss was gentle but insistent. Familiar yet brand-new. Her hands slid to his chest, feeling the solid beat of his heart beneath the soft flannel, and for a moment the world slipped away. There was no past, no future, just this. The two of them together.

When they finally pulled back, only slightly, he rested his forehead against hers, breath uneven.

“Okay,” he murmured. “It was definitely the right time to do that.”

Rebecca laughed lightly, lips still close to his. “Just to be sure…let’s try that again.”

Chapter 24

Rebecca was back in the diner, two coffees in, nervously awaiting Cort’s arrival. The night before felt like a dream. When she closed her eyes, it played on a reel. The two of them zipped inside sleeping bags together, kissing by the light of the moon and the flicker of the fire. She opened her eyes and looked around, at the boxes by the door waiting to be taken to the Live & Give, at his toolbox waiting for his arrival. Everything looked the same as it had the day before. But she felt different.

She reached up and touched her lips. They felt swollen, still tingled. It felt like they had kissed for hours—and maybe they had, staying pressed close until the sun rose over the horizon and Cort had to go wake Pip up and get him ready for school. She had felt shy with him, in the light of day, had not wanted to leave but also felt the urge to go back to the diner and collect herself. So she said a quick goodbye to Pip, who wanted to come outside and confirm the pumpkin had indeed been unscathed by the cold night, and then walked home through the amber-hued autumn morning, her body feeling like it was electrically charged.

She still felt that way. And when there was a tap on the front door, she felt a jolt. She smoothed her hair and went to greet Cort, feeling her cheeks warming as she did. “Hey,” he said, his expression shy. His hair was damp from a shower. He had on jeans and a white T-shirt.

“Oh, here,” she said, walking to the counter to hand him his flannel. “I walked home wearing this.”

Now he smiled, took it back. “Hope it smells like you,” he said casually, putting it beside his toolbox as her heart raced at his words, and she tried to figure out if things were different between them or if this was just the way it had always been, now supercharged by last night.

Not knowing what else to say, she went for the obvious. “Coffee?”

“I need some. Late night. Someone kept me up.”

She laughed nervously, and her cheeks flamed. She turned away and busied herself pouring him a cup, and was surprised to find him standing close when she turned.

“Hey,” he said, taking the cup out of her hand and placing it on the counter.

She looked up at him. “Hey.”

“I can’t stop smiling,” he said, and relief bubbled up inside her.

“Same,” she said, and saw relief warm his expression, too. He reached forward and caught her by the waist, his fingers warm.

“So, that was okay? Last night?”

She tilted her head. “I’m not really sure,” she said, suddenly feeling bold. “It really just feels like the sort of thing I need to do more of, so I can figure out if I like it or not.”

His laugh was a low growl, and then his lips were on hers and her body was on fire. Her hands fisted in his T-shirt, pulling him closer. She felt rather than heard his groan vibrate against her mouth.

He pulled away. “This is very unprofessional,” he murmured. “I should really get to work.”

“It is,” she agreed, standing on her tiptoes so their lips were close again. “Where’s your work ethic?”

His lips were on hers again. “There’s something here that keeps distracting me. But I really should…” He lifted her easily onto the counter and stepped between her knees. Then a throat cleared behind them.

Cort turned. “Crispin.” He stepped away from Rebecca and she hopped lightly down from the counter.

“I’m interrupting,” he said. It wasn’t a question.

“Oh, no, we were just…”

But it was very obvious what they had just been doing, so she trailed off, helpless while Crispin pursed his lips and nodded, as if something he had already suspected had now been confirmed.

“I was just walking by and noticed your fall decorations are definitely on point—I wanted to see how things were going with the rest of the place. Clearly, you’ve been busy.”

Cort shook his head, but he was smiling. “We have,” he said. “And everything is going fine in here. I’ve dealt with a leak, repaired some drywall, we decided to replace the entire floor instead of just some boards, so that’s what I’m working on now.”

“And you’ll pay off your account soon, Rebecca? Unless I missed it, I haven’t seen a check come across my desk.”