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“Agreed.”
“Or maybe someone posts a charity on their Facebook, but then walks by the person on the corner with the cup every morning on their way to get their boutique coffee.”
“Ouch.”
He shrugged. “Not really judging, but it’s revealing.”
“Maybe they don’t carry cash. Or are afraid of being mugged or something.”
“Valid points.” His light grip on my hand tightened a bit, and his gaze intensified. “I like you, Jude Tiernay.”
I wiped the corner of my mouth with my other hand, hiding the smile that wanted to bloom. I wanted to play it cool, but the truth was, I wasn’t a cool person. “I kind of like you, too.”
“I’m not ready for the night to be over. Would you like to come back to my apartment and…watch a movie?”
He was smooth. “I…uh.” I bit my lip. I didn’t want the date to end, either. “I would. As long as you understand that’s all it is. I’m a good girl. I don’t do sex on the first date.”
His eyes gleamed. “I respect that.” He tapped the folder containing the check, which he’d paid earlier, and started to rise. “Let’s get out of here.”
Jason lived in what would be a fairly modest apartment anywhere outside of New York but was prime real estate in the city and therefore worth a pretty penny. I lifted an eyebrow as he led me from the elevator into the vestibule and paused to unlock the door. “Parents?”
He grinned, not at all sheepish. “Of course. Yours, too, right?”
“Guilty. I have a place off campus with a few friends, but I mostly still live at home. I have a younger sister who I—” I broke off, thinking about the way Eleanor was always picking at something—the skin of her wrists, the clothes she wore, the furniture she was sitting on. “She’s never been diagnosed, but she struggles with anxiety. I don’t like to leave her for long periods of time.” I finished simply.
“That’s rough. Want a drink?” He walked over to a small bar cart and gestured to the array of decanters and bottles.
“Ah…sure.” I glanced over the selection. “Whatever is fine.”
While he poured, I wandered over to the window and brushed aside the drape to peer out. The apartment was on the seventh floor, tucked on a side street. He still had a good view of the city in its twinkling nighttime glory, though, and I stood, mesmerized by the glittering lights, until he came up behind me and pulled me back against his chest.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, accepting the drink he pressed into my hand and bringing it to my mouth for a sip.
“Mm. You’re beautiful.” He nuzzled his lips into the flesh beneath my ear, sending a shiver through me.
“Flattery…”
He tugged the lobe of my ear between his teeth, and I lost the ability to form words.
“…flattery?” I felt the smile on his lips as he turned me in his arms. Meeting my eyes, he ran his hands up my back, beneath my sweater, then down again, and pressed me against the cool pane of the window.
“Will get you everywhere,” I finished.
His smile grew wider, and he dipped his head forward, leaning down to kiss me. His kiss was a surprise. Jason Lancaster had been hiding, I thought. Beneath the shy exterior he was bold and carnal, his tongue swooping in to dance with mine in unmistakable mimicry of what he’d like to do with other parts of his body.
His hands were restless, stroking over me and rousing responses that had been dormant for some time. I lifted my arm to curl it around his neck, the drink in my hand sloshing over the rim and onto my hand and his neck with the motion.
He laughed, taking it from me and putting it on a small table beside the window. Then, his gaze never leaving mine, he took my alcohol-glossed fingers and drew them one by one into his mouth.
I think I whimpered.
“You still want to watch a movie?” he asked.
I shook my head.
No. No, I did not want to watch a movie. I wanted him to fuck me.
Still smiling, he drew me down a narrow hall toward what I assumed to be his bedroom, kicking his shoes off as he walked. I followed suit, my heels landing beside his loafers. He released my hand long enough to tug his shirt over his head with that sexy one-handed pull from the nape that made my mouth go dry every time I saw it.
