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Uni guys were all gangly and awkward, or just arseholes. Still growing into their bodies and minds, they were more like baby giraffes than men.
But Tom was a rare mix of maturity, hot, charming and sweet. An ‘old soul’ Mum called him and she was right – he spoke and acted like a man older than his eighteen years, and certainly more often than the guys I knew at uni. No doubt a product of having to grow up fast as a teen after the death of his father.
And he’d melted my brain by just telling me I was beautiful.
“You look good in your suit,” I spluttered.
Tom laughed. “Only good?”
He looked great and he knew it. His grip tightened on my hand as he spun me, the calluses from years of working on the farm sending shivers up my arm.
The dance ended, and we went outside for air and stood silently looking at the stars. I shivered, and Tom immediately took off his coat. “You’re freezing.”
“I’m okay,” I protested as he adjusted his coat around my shoulders.
“You’ve always been a frog.”
Humph. He was right. Hands, toes and nose were always icy in cold weather. Tom, however, seemed immune to the laws of thermodynamics and radiated heat.
We were so close. I was enveloped in his warmth and scent—spicy, woodsy and all Tom.
“And if you kissed me, would I turn into a princess?”
My cheeks burned so hard. I could land light planes with how bright red they were right now.
Tom’s eyes flared; his grin turned up the wattage. “I’m willing to test that theory.”
His eyes dipped to my lips.
Holy shit.
“Have you ever thought—”
“Not until this week,” he answered quickly.
“Me either,” I emphasised.
“But I have. Thought about it. This week, I mean.”
“Me too.”
How did we end up so close? I was pretty sure I could rub my nose against his if he’d just lean down a little more.
“Should we?”
“Maybe we shouldn’t,” I said in a rush. Was this wrong, with him being eighteen and me twenty-two?
“I think we should,” he whispered. “If you want to.”
My heart thudded once, twice, and then I nodded.
He slowly leaned in, his lips grazing mine as light as a feather. “A quick kiss.”
“Yeah.” I swallowed hard, a shudder passing through me. “Quick.”
With a tentative touch on his arm, I stood on my tiptoes and brushed my lips against his.
An explosion of warmth burst from my chest, spreading down my arms and to my toes. His kiss had transformed the frog into a roaring fire, embers bursting into the night sky like a flare.
