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I wanted to blame it on lack of sleep more than anything. As soon as I’d gotten home from our date last night, I had turned on my laptop and set to work, but even if I didn’t have a paper due this morning, I wouldn’t have slept a wink.
That. Kiss.
The one tha
t set my thighs on fire and ignited something in me I’d never felt before. And the dancing. Shit! He’d gotten me to forget about everything. About school. About my paper. About my overbearing parents. It had all faded away. And I’d let it. I’d liked it.
I let my eyes flutter closed and pulled my hoodie up and around my neck, shielding myself from the chilly spring breeze. I focused in on the sound of the wind rustling the branches. The chirping of the birds in the distance. The music that wafted over the asphalt from the lawn where a group of women did burpees.
I let sensation take over and it reminded me of the way every hair on my body prickled in acknowledgment when his hands were on me. The way my blood rushed through my ears. The way my heart hammered in my chest. With only a simple touch to my face he had me panting and shivering. I couldn’t even imagine what my body would do if he ever got me naked and under him.
I might have limited sexual experience, but I knew that Max Levin would be all the experience I needed.
But that would never happen. No. I couldn’t let that happen.
I couldn’t let him mess with my mojo. I barely had time to sleep, let alone allow him to help me finish the bucket list. I had agreed to his terms last night under a haze of desire and bad decisions, but here I was, waiting with excitement simmering under my skin, for a man I knew I should stay far away from.
“Are you ready?” A familiar voice woke me from my own head.
I opened my eyes and was face-to-face with Max Levin. He looked…hot. Sexy as hell, in black basketball shorts and a white hoodie. Dark hair covered his strong calves. I didn’t like muscle-y men. Looking at him, with the glow of sweat covering his exposed skin, a slight flush to his cheeks and the earbuds dangling from his ear, I didn’t know which Max I liked better, casual or suited up.
Neither. You don’t like Max Levin, remember.
“Ready for what?”
“We’re running.” He pointed his thumb at the track. “Do something athletic, right?”
I snorted. Somehow the dainty laugh I reserved for adults and colleagues didn’t make it into my conversations with him.
“You’re taking this list seriously, aren’t you?”
I had no idea why. I had barely contemplated how to go about tackling it, and within twenty-four hours Max was on his way to having two checked off.
Which led me to believe there was more to this offer. No one was this nice. No one went out of their way to help a stranger with a stupid list so she could alleviate her guilt by finally pleasing her dead grandmother. Even Mother Teresa herself wouldn’t have taken on this case.
“This is serious. We don’t have much time to conquer the list before you graduate. Although there are a few items I’m not sure I can help you with, but I’ll do my best.”
“You remember the list?”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. Inside was a small piece of paper. He’d written his own copy of the bucket list, and the first item was already crossed off. I smiled up at him, appreciating the lengths he’d gone to help.
“Lock your car. Let’s go.”
We walked from the parking lot to the track. Men and women whizzed by us, barely paying attention to the newcomers. The group of women were now doing sit-ups, their trainer leaning over each of them, screaming something to keep them motivated. That so wouldn’t work on me.
Max started to jog in place, shaking out his arms and hands, moving his neck and torso from side to side.
I realized I wasn’t going to get out of this. The only thing more embarrassing than my life experiences were my athletic skills.
With a smile on his face, he led me in a round of stretches, which were apparently important to keep the blood moving and muscles loose. I needed all the looseness I could get.
When I was relaxed, he pulled out a stopwatch. “The easiest way to learn how to run is intervals. We’re going to walk for five minutes, run for thirty seconds. Again and again and again.”
“Thirty seconds?”
I could totally do this. Thirty seconds was easy.
“Are you ready?”
