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"So, what's the story?" Sophia asks, leaning against the counter as I pour myself a cup.
I take a deep breath and set the coffee pot down, turning to face her. "Amanda and I were high school sweethearts—we're both from the same small town in Virginia," I start. "She went to Yale for college, we broke things off for a bit...and then we got back together when she came back to Virginia after college. But she wanted to teach, so she went to get her master's at Harvardthis time, she's smart as hell, then her PhD...and we were both almost thirty by the time she was done with school."
I take a deep breath, then a sip of my coffee. Sophia stays silent, though she comes over to get a cup of coffee of her own.
"So, we thought we would get married," I go on. "But she had a job offer at a university in Vermont...so she moved to Vermont. And I was busy building up my business at home in Virginia, and my dad was sick with cancer—he's okay now, don't worry about that—so we were apart again. We stayed like that for nine years, talking about getting married, but life just kept getting in the way. Then she got a job at NYU, and it seemed like it was time to relocate with my parents retired and healthy."
Sophia bites her lip, and I try not to get distracted once again by how lovely she is.Fuck—I don't want to be telling this story. I just want to kiss her, hold her, and dounspeakablethings to this gorgeous woman.
"I think you can see where it goes from here," I murmur. "Amanda and I bought this place...and it quickly became clear that we'd grown apart after all the years living separately. She didn't want to get married anymore. And I wanted kids...but time had passed. Amanda was happy with her life single, and I wanted a family...so we ended things."
Sophia's eyes sparkle with genuine sympathy, and she reaches out to take my free hand, squeezing it gently. "That is a sad story," she whispers. "Are you...are you okay?"
"I wasn't for a long time," I say, frowning. "But I think I might be now."
"Why's that?"
I meet Sophia's dove-grey eyes, searching for a sign that I'm not about to make an ass out of myself.
"It's actually something Amanda said when I called her on the drive," I say. "And you are more than permitted to tell me if I'mway off-base here, but...she said she thought you had a thing for me."
Sophia's brows shoot up toward her red hair, her lips parted, and her cheeks turn bright pink. "Oh. Did she?"
"She did."
Sophia blushes and grips the coffee cup with both hands, pulling back from me slightly. "She thought I was your girlfriend."
"And how did you feel about that?"
My voice has dropped a register as the conversation gets tense and heated. I can feel my body responding to the way she blushes and smiles, drawn toward her like a magnet.
She hasn't said the words yet...but I'm picking up on each and every signal, even though I'm rusty when it comes to flirtation.
"I can't," she says. "I'm...I'm the manager at the White Oak. I made that rule myself, it wouldn't be—"
I suddenly feel bold, taking a step forward and leaving my coffee behind. "But you want to?"
I'm close enough to touch her now, her eyes wide as she stares up at me. Her eyelashes flutter, and I realize they're a light shade of red, just like her eyebrows.
Fuck, she's hot.
And I can't resist the urge to touch her any longer when she finally responds.
"Yes."
I take the coffee from her hands and set it on the kitchen counter, then I slide my hands across her lower back, my thumbs grazing bare skin. Sophia gasps as I pull her in and duck my head...as I capture her lips with mine.
A soft moan resonates against my lips.
I kiss her harder.
Sophia's lips are soft and pliant against mine, opening to invite me deeper as her hands slide up my chest to cling to me forbalance. She presses herself against me as I lift her slightly, my hands on her ass, proprietary.
I need her now.
I break off the kiss and catch her eyes, our breath mingling between us as I set her down. Sophia's chest heaves with each ragged breath, her eyes wide and glazed.
"I want you," I growl.
