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Ellis reached forward and grabbed my cheeks like the sweet, kind grandma I didn’t have. I winced as he squeezed and pulled at them.
“Ow,” I grumbled, pushing at his muscular forearms. How does anyone even work out theirforearms—oh.
“Tessa.” Ellis patted my cheek before pushing my phone up toward my face. “Don’t overthink it.” He stood up then and slipped hiscell phone into his back pocket. “You can explain that you’re a brilliant actress who will be famous and rich and beloved once she walks through the goddamn audition room door.” Ellis leaned over to kiss me on the forehead. “Just start swiping, okay?”
“Wait,” I said as he turned toward the door. “Where are you going? I don’t know how to do this.”
He laughed and moved around the back of the couch. He reached his arms around each side of my neck and rested his chin on my shoulder. I froze like a deer in the headlights, trying desperately not to breathe in the delicious citrusysmell of his aftershave. His hair against my cheek was soft as he pushed buttons I wasn’t paying attention to on my phone.
“There,” he said, showing me a few example swipes on the app.Hotguy afterhotguy went whizzing by.
“Could not be easier.” Ellis’s voice was warm against my ear.
I told the goosebumps climbing up my spine to go ahead and climb right back down.
He backed up. “I have to get to that date, alright?”
Maybe it was just me hoping that there was a tinge of hesitation in his voice, but I thought I heard it. It was as if he was waiting—hoping, even—for me to say something to stop him. As he paused with his chin on my shoulder, our cheeks pressed against one another, I considered doing just that: stopping him. In my mind I sexily whispered, “Could you feel my forehead before you leave? I think I’m coming down with something.” Then, “Hey, really quick, my sink has been making funny noises all week. Can you take a little look?” Or theboldestof all: “Ellis, I want you to stay.”
I knew those were words I would never say.
“Yeah, yeah, have fun,” I said, leaning away from the touch of his warm skin against mine. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I forced a casual laugh out from my suddenly dry lips. It died when I saw the flash of disappointment on Ellis’s face. But before I could say something, he recovered. His easy, charming smile was right back in place.
“And what exactly do you do, Tess?” he joked as he again headed toward my front door. “Butterfly kisses?”
I stuck my tongue out at him. Ellis was halfway out of the door when my phone dinged in my hand. I stared in confusion at the notice.
“A match already?” Ellis asked.
I looked up at Ellis and shrugged.“I guess.”
I turned myattention back to my phone. My match was Levi P. from San Diego. And he was hot.
“Let me see.”
I heard the door click shut, and before I could respond, Ellis was back, wiggling in next to me on the couch. His fingers wrapped around mine to tilt the screen toward him. I glanced over at his face to see if the heat of my skin was affecting him the wayhiswas affecting me. His eyes were skimming Levi P.’s profile.
“He sent you a message.”
Insurprise, I turned to see Ellis opening the chat.
LEVI P:Love those pics, babe. Got any more to send?
Ellis laughed as I just gawked.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Tess, you know what that means.”
Ellis gave me a quick wink before flipping through Levi P.’s pictures. They were all pretty much the same: nakedsix packat the beach, naked six pack at the park, nakedsix packwith a dog, nakedsix packin Vegas, nakedsix packwith yet another dog.
“What do I do?” I asked Ellis. “What do I say?”
Ellis drummed his fingers along the side of my phone.“Here,” he said.
I watched as he typed, ‘You first big fella.’
