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“Like doesn’t begin to describe it, doll. Not even a little bit.” I whip my head around and look at him, suddenly feeling a bit pissed and cheated at this news.
“Then why didn’t you say something, Nolan? Why with the secret gifts and silence? You have had so much time to ask me out. Why did you wait?” He looks unsure of himself right now, and I feel a bit vindicated. It is a valid question.
“Your books made me wait, Cheryl. Your characters, even when they find love, don’t have men that maul them. They are chaste and chivalrous and tempered. In my mind, that is what you wanted and needed. I was more than content to go that route until the bastard touched you the other day and I lost my mind. I was no longer contained, babe and now I can’t put it back in the box.” Well damn.
His explanation rings true in my mind, but in my heart, I can’t help but feel like we wasted so much time.
“Did it ever occur to you that I only wrote stories with men like that because I don’t know any other way to write them? I have no experience in any of this, so I write what I saw in movies with my grandma and mom.” He looks surprised for a moment.
“No. That didn’t occur to me, baby.”
“Well it should have.” By now, Rose and Nick are staring at us, probably half of the patrons in the restaurant, but I don’t care. I am too fired up to care. “I have been beside myself, scared and confused about my feelings for you, wanting to tell you, but convinced I was the only one who felt it. When the gifts started coming I prayed they were from you, but…” I am so wrapped up in my feelings I don’t realize he has moved until his arm is around my waist and his mouth is descending on mine.
His lips are softer than I imagined a man's lips to be, and thank God for that. His breath is warm and inviting, but his grip is firm and unrelenting. “Kiss me back, baby.” He commands. My mouth obeys. My arms wrap around his neck, and I open my mouth, unsure of what else to do, but when his tongue touches mine, something natural takes over.
Moaning into his mouth, I mimic his actions and have mercy; I have never felt anything like this. My body feels like it is being pumped full of Red Bull and unleashed during the peak of a celebration, like confetti being blown into the air, shimmering and beautiful.
“Excuse me,” Rose says in a sassy voice, interrupting us. Nolan pulls back, chuckling and kissing my nose and forehead before pulling me to his side.
“We apologize guys,” he says to Rose and his brother. I still can’t speak. I am swirling in a haze of wet kisses, and an embrace so strong a tornado couldn’t lift me from his arms. Holy moly. What the hell was that?
“I think it is time to go,” Nick says, pulling out Rose’s chair.
“Sounds good to me,” Nolan agrees, kissing my forehead once more.
We finally make it into the night air, and the cold wakes me back up, bringing to light that I just made out with my dream guy in the middle of a restaurant. Oh, shoot. My mom is totally going to find out about this.
The walk home is short, of course, but also quiet. I am starting to worry. Maybe I wasn’t good at kissing? We make it to my front door, and he waits for Rose and Nick to go inside. “How are you feeling, doll?” He moves my hair behind my ear.
“I don’t know. A little self-conscious.” I decide to go for the truth.
“Why?” He looks genuinely confused right now.
“That was my first kiss, and I am worried I wasn’t good at it.” Totally not what I am expecting; he throws his head back and laughs. I feel like stomping my feet, annoyed he finds my feelings funny when he stops suddenly and looks at me. His gaze is the equivalent of a lion seeing its meal in front of it. My body begins to warm again, everything in me calling to him.
“Nothing about anything you do will not ever be perfect. That kiss was the best I have ever had in my life. Do you know why?” I shake my head no, licking my lips, ready for a repeat. “Simple. It was with you, baby. I am the lucky one here, Cheryl. Do you understand?” I nod slowly, wanting more time, hoping like hell he wants to do more of it. “Good. Now come here.”
Like a love-drunk zombie, I walk right into his open arms and inhale his scent. It's woodsy and citrusy. It’s him. Strong and surprising. “This feels nice,” I say into his chest.
“Yeah, this is only the beginning, baby. Give me your mouth.” Oh, God. His commanding voice is like catnip. I want to do everything he tells me to do. His kiss is short, but no less intoxicating. “I have to go. I have a deadline for another author, otherwise, we would be at my place. Soon, doll. Real soon.” Not soon enough.
* * *
It has been two days since dinner, and we have spent every night since then doing something with the festival. The gifts have gotten more and more extravagant if you can believe it. The day before yesterday, he bought a pair of diamond earrings, and then yesterday, a matching bracelet. All of them have the infinity symbol on them.
We have been around town together, holding hands, participating in the events, and setting the tongues ablaze with gossip. My mom has been calling nonstop, but I have kept her at a distance until I know just how serious this is.
Nolan has been a gentleman, and even though that is what I write, I am done living it, damn it. Every night when he leaves me, I am a wet sloppy mess, and when I should be able to talk to Rose about it, that hasn’t been possible. Why, you ask? She has been spending the night out with Nick. Speaking of, here she comes.
“Like a thief in the night. Or is it a maid in the morning?” I tease her as she walks in my front door. She rolls her eyes at me and giggles before grabbing a piece of my bacon off the plate.
“Good morning, grumpy,.” she sing songs before going to change her clothes and coming back. “How long have you been awake?” She asks.
“Two hours.” I frown because I am exhausted. It feels like I haven’t been asleep at all.
“So, still no further, huh?” she asks.
“No. I don’t know what else to do.” I am at my wit's end.
