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“Can you excuse me for a second? My friend just arrived.”
“Huh?” Bryce asks.
“I need to get out.”
“Oh. Right. Okay.” Bryce seems confused.
So does Miles.
But Bryce slides over, and I hop out of the booth, moving across the room to where Miles stands, looking uncertain and maybe like he’s trying to shoot lasers at Bryce with his eyeballs. I rush over to him, and because I’m still in panic mode and thinking with only my hormones and none of my brain cells, I do something absurdly mortifying.
“I’m so glad you’re here, and I’m so sorry for what I’m about to do. Please go with it. That guy sitting beside me is certifiable, and I need him to get a clue.” I grab the lapels of his suit jacket and push up on my toes. Then I mash my lips against his.
chapter fifteen
WELL, THAT WAS UNEXPECTED
Miles
To say I’m confused would be an understatement. Kitty’s lips are currently pressed against mine. And that dude she was sitting beside, who looks like one of the cartoon elves from that Claymation Christmas movie with the abominable snowman, is glaring daggers at me. There’s also a woman staring at us with her mouth agape.
I stop focusing on the gawkers and focus instead on Kitty, whose lips are still on mine. They’re soft and warm.
I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’m not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, either. I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her against me. She makes a noise of surprise and parts her lips. I take the opportunity for what it is and brush my tongue against hers. Her mouth tastes fruity and sweet.
Kitty makes a noise of surprise and releases one of my lapels. Her hand curves around the back of my neck, and she tips her head, her tongue tangling with mine. What starts as an innocent kiss quickly escalates into a very public battle of the tongues. Eventually I have to stop because I’m at risk of getting a hard-on if I keep it up. It wouldn’t be so bad if we had some privacy, but we’re in the middle of a pub with a substantial audience.
I pull back far enough so that I can see her face. Her eyes are still closed, and her lips are parted.
“Hi.” The word comes out about two octaves lower than usual.
Her eyes pop open and her mouth forms an O. She blinks at me a few times before she says, “I just attacked you with my lips. I’m so sorry.”
“Um. I’m not?” I rub the back of my neck. There are little indents from where her nails pressed into the skin.
“You’re not sorry I attacked you with my lips?” She seems perplexed. God, she’s adorable. And gorgeous. And she has great lips.
I shake my head. “Not even a little sorry. You’re welcome to attack me with your lips whenever you feel like it.” Wherever you feel like attacking me with them.
“Except maybe when my mouth is full of food. That would not be great.” She squeezes her eyes shut and grimaces. “Why can’t I ever just stop when I’m ahead?”
“One of the things I like most about you is the way you don’t stop when you’re ahead.” I incline my head marginally toward the table. “What’s with the boy band member?”
“He’s a friend of my sister’s. I’m still sorry about the lip attack. This really wasn’t how I envisioned our first kiss.” She slaps her hand over her mouth. “I wish I could pluck that last sentence out of your ears and shove it back into my word hole.”
I smile down at her. “If I’m going to be totally honest, that wasn’t how I envisioned our first kiss going either, but I still very much enjoyed it and look forward to a potential repeat. Hopefully soon.”
She rapid-blinks a few times. “You’ve thought about kissing me?”
“Many times,” I admit.
“Me too. I even had dreams about it back when I thought you were a cat hater. That was frustrating, by the way, the whole finding you attractive while also being annoyed by you.”
“I can imagine.” I nod stoically, then incline my head toward the table. “Maybe I need to thank the boy band dude for being so clueless.”
“I wouldn’t go that far.” She thumbs over her shoulder. “Do you want to sit down and have a drink? I can introduce you to my sister and her friends.”
“That’d be great.” I let her lead me to the table.
Boy band dude, whose name is Bryce, grudgingly gives up his seat so I can sit next to Kitty. She introduces me as her friend and blushes sixteen different shades of red when her sister says she’s heard all about me and that she’s happy to finally meet me. Based on Hattie’s smirk and Kitty’s pink-tinged cheeks, I’m thinking whatever she’s heard has been good things. The whole laying a kiss on me is also a tipoff.
