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‘We’ve got all evening,’ she said, ‘so why don’t we give it a go. If we’re full after this one, we could always have the main course to share. Do you think they’ll mind?’
He thought they probably might and if he had been sitting here with anyone other than Seren, he would never have asked the waiter, but ask he did, and the waiter didn’t bat an eyelid.
They agreed on the lamb, with a mixed green salad and buttered roast potatoes to accompany it, and when their meal arrived and they began to dig in, Daniel didn’t think the evening could be any more romantic. Here he was in a trendy restaurant, sharing a plate of the most delicious food with a gorgeous woman who was so easy to talk to he felt he’d known her all his life. And there were candles and soft music, too.
It felt incredibly intimate to be sharing one dish, and Daniel had difficulty concentrating on the food. He so desperately wanted to kiss her. And more.
Finally, they were done, after sharing yet another course, this time a dessert of tubes of crispy pastry filled with creamy ricotta cheese and smooth, rich chocolate.
He was so stuffed at the end of it, that he didn’t think he’d eat again for a whole week. ‘How do people manage a starter as well?’ he mused. ‘Coffee?’
‘It’ll have to be black,’ Seren said. ‘Anything more will tip me over the edge from being full, to feeling sick because I’ve eaten too much.’
‘Would you like a digestivo?’ their waiter asked, and when Seren heard it was a special Italian liqueur aimed to help digestion, they both decided to have one.
Daniel leant back in his chair, feeling relaxed and happy, as he sipped his drink. He also felt a little drunk – but not on alcohol. He was drunk with desire.
All through dinner he’d kept looking at her delectable lips, imagining how they’d taste when he parted them and found her tongue. Or what it would be like to take her in his arms and feel her curves against his chest. So when she suggested a stroll through town to help their meal go down, he didn’t know whether to feel relieved or frustrated. He so desperately wanted to kiss her, but he couldn’t decide whether she’d welcome his advances or push him away, but by taking a walk it delayed the point at which he’d find out.
The streets were damp and misty, the wet pavements reflecting the glow from the streetlights and the twinkling Christmas trees in the shop windows. Daniel had a flashback of his parents taking him out on a December night, to dawdle along the high street and admire the decorated shops and the festive windows, and a bolt of the thrill he used to feel at the thought of Christmas and a visit from Santa shot through him and he laughed aloud.
Then he had to explain why he was laughing so Seren didn’t think he was a complete idiot.
‘I know what you mean,’ she said, hooking her arm cosily through his. ‘I always feel like that about Christmas. I suppose you could say I’m a big kid at heart, but I adore this time of year. It’s so sparkly and fun.’
She was warm tucked up against him, and every time he took a breath her perfume invaded his nostrils until his head swam from the intoxicating scent.
Unable to bear it any longer, he stopped and turned to face her. ‘I’ve had a good time this evening,’ he said. ‘Do you think you’d like to… would you consider…?’ Crumbs this was difficult. ‘Can I kiss you?’
Seren pouted and frowned. ‘I thought we were meant to be dating?’
‘We were – weare.’
‘So why do you need to ask?’ She lifted her chin in an invitation he couldn’t refuse.
He took a step towards her and gathered her to him, feeling her melt against him as he drew her into his embrace. Gazing down, his eyes met hers as he bent his head, and he couldn’t look away. She captivated him, her dilated pupils holding him prisoner, trapping him with the answering yearning he saw in their depths, and he sensed she wanted this kiss as much as he did.
Slowly, his mouth found hers, and when he kissed her, her eyelids fluttered closed and she let out a soft sigh.
It was all he could do to hold himself back and not ravish her on the spot.
He felt like a teenager again – all hormones and gauche trembling hands – as he reached for the back of her head and buried his fingers in her hair. Her lips parted in response, and his tongue slipped between them, to taste her fully.
He had no idea how long they stood there, lost in each other, savouring their very first kiss, but eventually they resurfaced and Daniel took a shuddering breath as he fought to control his racing heart.
‘I could do that all night,’ she murmured, and he rested his forehead against hers and said, ‘So could I,’ meaning it with every cell in his body, but also knowing that he would be unable to stop at kissing.
He wanted all of her, every last centimetre. But it was too soon. He wasn’t like Tobias, happy to jump into bed at the drop of a hat, and he didn’t think Seren would want that, either. Despite the passion zipping along his veins and the deep-seated longing in his gut, he’d wait until it felt right, and let Seren tell him when she was ready to take things to the next level, especially since they’d only just reached this one.
What an amazing kiss it had been. It had turned him inside out and upside down, and had left him with a pounding heart, a racing pulse and the sensation of being unable to catch his breath.
‘When will I see you again?’ he asked, not wanting the evening to end, yet knowing that it must.
‘There’s a song in there, somewhere.’
‘Please don’t ask me to sing it,’ he murmured, his lips against hers once more. ‘I don’t want you to go off me.’
‘That’s not going to happen,’ she assured him. ‘Unless…’ She pulled back.
‘Unless what?’
‘You don’t stop talking. Kiss me again.’
Daniel stopped talking and did as he was told.
