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She shook her head. “Too short.”
“Not short. Fun sized.”
She had to laugh. He used to say that all the time.
“You can hang onto me if you need a rest.” He held her gaze for a moment.
She nodded and swam toward him. She didn’t need to rest her arms and legs from swimming, but she did need to rest her mind from the high alert it was on. They were supposed to be just hanging out as a guy and a girl who liked each other—not taking offense at innocent comments or reading too much into them. When she reached him, she put both hands on one of his shoulders. It was the only way she could think of to hang onto him that wouldn’t be too risky. She wanted to loop her arms around his neck—and wrap her legs around his waist. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world. But it would figuratively and literally open her up to something else that had always come naturally between them. She wasn’t ready to go there yet—at least her mind wasn’t, and she wasn’t sure it would be able to keep her body in check.
He turned and landed a kiss on her lips. She kissed him back before it even occurred to her not to.
They both leaned back looking shocked.
“I’m sorry. I …” Marcos looked stunned. “I didn’t mean … I don’t know how to be around you and not do that.”
Molly closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again. “Neither do I.”
“You don’t mind?”
“One part of my brain is screaming that it’s kind of foolish, but the rest of my brain—the rest of me—just wants more.” Looking into his big brown eyes, she knew it was true. And what was wrong with it? Why not? She placed her hands on both his shoulders, wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him. She kissed him like she’d wanted to for twelve years. It wasn’t as good as she’d imagined it would be—it was a million times better. His arms closed around her, holding her to him as he kissed her back. One hand came up to cup the back of her head as he took control. She’d known he would. He might have changed in many ways, but she wouldn’t want that to change about him. It was part of why she’d loved him. He needed to be the man. He’d let her kiss him, he’d let her lead in the bedroom, but he couldn’t help himself. He kissed her like she was his. He’d made love to her like she was his, and the way his hard body felt against hers right now, she was hoping that it wouldn’t be too long until he did so again.
~ ~ ~
Marcos’ heart was pounding in his chest. This was the moment he’d been waiting for. The moment he’d dreamed about and longed for. She was back in his arms, and he never wanted to let her go again. She kissed him like she meant it, and he hoped his kiss could tell her that he meant it, too. The back of his neck tingled as she sank her fingers into his hair and slid her tongue into his mouth. Her kiss was like her; it was playful—eager—and it told him how much she still cared.
When they finally came up for air, he planted a kiss in the middle of her forehead. “I’ve missed you, Molly.”
She smiled and planted a peck on his lips. “I’ve missed you, too. So much.”
“Do you think—”
She put a finger to his lips. “I don’t want to think too much about any of it right now. I want to do what you said, just be in the moment, right here, today. I don’t want to think about the past.”
He could understand that. “What about the future?”
She held his gaze for a long moment. His heartbeat had started to return to normal after their kiss, but it sped right up again when she shook her head. He couldn’t stand to hear if she didn’t think a future might be possible for them.
“I don’t know, Marcos. Of course, I love the idea. But then I loved the idea before, too. It’s going to take me a while before I trust that this could be for real this time.”
“It is for real, Molly. I’m for real.”
She nodded. “I think you believe that, but you believed it then. Things change.”
He held her closer to his chest. “Nothing is going to change my mind about you and me ever again.”
She gave him a sad smile. “I hope not, I really do, but if it’s true, there’s no rush, is there?”
“No. There is no rush. If it’s up to me, we’ll have forever.”
He’d swear that her eyes shone with hope when he said that, but she didn’t reply. Didn’t say it was what she wanted. Even if it was, he knew he was the one who had to put in the work. He was the one who’d ruined both their lives. He’d do whatever it took—for however long it took—until she trusted him again, until she was ready to share her life with him again.
“I know we’re not supposed to be rehashing the past yet, but will you answer me one question?”
“Anything.” If she wanted to talk about it, he was ready. “I’m not trying to hold back or hide from what I did. I was only hoping to see you smile again before we go there.”
She did smile. “And I think it’s the right way to go. If we’re even going to consider the possibility of a future, we need to know if we still like each other first—if we can still have fun together.”
He smiled at her and leaned backward. She looked surprised and clung tighter to his shoulders until he laughed and let himself fall back and sink under the water. She went with him and then let go and splashed away from him.
