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I raise my head, meeting him in the middle. My world is right side up again. He kisses me, sucking
my bottom lip between his teeth. He’s not hesitant, but he’s not rushed, either. He’s the perfect mixture of everything.
He pulls away, and he searches my eyes. Carefully. Thoroughly. It’s just me and him, galaxies and the headlights.
After several moments, he moves away, and I think maybe he’s lost his nerve. Yes, I want to tell him. You will be giving up a lot. There’s no going back. Trust me, I know.
He takes my hand and pulls me into a standing position. Then he takes the coat he’s slung over my shoulders and lays it on the hood. He nods, and I realize he hasn’t lost his nerve. He’s setting the stage. “Is this all right with you?”
This is my chance. One way or the other, I have a decision to make. It’s already been made. It was made when you got in the car. It was made when you pulled off the highway. It was made the first time you saw his stupid face. I look up at the stars, and then I meet his gaze directly. “Yes. This is perfect.”
He peels me out of my jeans. The cold hits me hard. All I feel is his warmth. A part of me cringes. Usually, I like to prepare myself for moments like this. I’m sure I smell like work, but he doesn’t seem to care. “I’d like to take my time with you, Izzy; I’d like to show you what I’m capable of,” he whispers. “But we haven’t got time for that.”
I nod as though I know what he means. I’ve got all the time in the world.
He lays me back on the hood and parts my knees. I listen as he tears the condom wrapper, and I’m grateful one of us has thought ahead. Suddenly, I feel him warm and rigid against my thigh. It causes me to jump. He places his palms on either side of me, lowers down. His lips meet my neck, grazing the spot just behind my ear. “You’ll have to forgive me,” he says. “I hate condoms. But I don’t trust that friend of yours.”
My eyes widen. It’s such a strange thing to say when you’re about to make love to someone for the first time. I hadn’t considered that this might not be love.
“I have wanted this for so long,” he says, kissing me on the mouth. “So long.”
“Me too,” I assure him.
He slides into me slowly, gently, carefully, and he moves with precision. “I want you to tell me what you like,” he says searching my eyes. “I want this to last.”
“This,” I murmur breathlessly. “I like this.”
“Yes,” he tells me. “But what do you want?”
“I want you to fuck me,” I say, and so he does.
I look up at the stars as he moves into me, and I’d like to say I’m thinking what a mistake this all is. I know I should care about his wife. But the truth is Josie Dunn never crosses my mind.
Chapter Nineteen
Josie
I don’t have time for this. Not today. I have a to-do list a mile long, and I was hoping for an afternoon to myself just to catch my breath.
“Avery, please. Calm down,” I say into the phone.
“I CAN’T CALM DOWN,” she yells, causing me to pull my ear away from the speaker. I can’t make out the rest of what she’s saying. I put the phone to my ear again, but this time all I hear is her heavy breathing, snot and tears. Finally, there’s a break. “Did you hear me at all? I NEED YOU TO COME AND GET ME.”
“Avery—”
“They cut me from the dance team.”
Great. I throw up my hands. “Why would they do that?”
She sniffles, blows her nose, into her collar no doubt. Then she starts crying again. “I don’t know.”
“Well, what did they say?” I shouldn’t sound so annoyed, but I can’t help myself. There’s a limit one can take where teenage dramatics are concerned. I search for my keys.
“It’s a long story,” she tells me, her tone matching my level of irritation. “Can you come and get me or not?”
When I don’t answer immediately—I’m still searching for the keys and wondering where I could have placed them—she lets out a long sigh. “Or should I just call Beth?”
“Beth? Why would you say that?” I reach into the drawer and grab the spare set of keys.
