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“Come on, cowboy.” Kyra linked her arm through Aiden’s and dragged him out the door. “Good night,” her friend called cheerfully.
She walked them to the door and then returned to the kitchen just as Silas was coming in from the garage.
“You didn’t have to take out my garbage.” But man, it was sexy when he did things like that—took the trash out, rolled up his sleeves to wash the dishes so she didn’t have to do them later. A dizzying attraction overtook her equilibrium.
“I know I didn’t have to take out the trash.” But that right there was the kind of thing Silas was always doing. Picking up the slack wherever he saw a need.
“Can we sit down for a minute?” She beckoned him to the living room couch. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you.” And now that they were finally alone, she had no idea where to start. She dropped to the couch, almost too tired to stand anymore.
Silas sat, leaving a healthy distance between them. “Before you say anything, I’m sorry about how I left things the other night. I shouldn’t have unloaded on you like that. And I shouldn’t have walked away.”
“You didn’t unload on me. You shared something. And I’m glad you did.” Now she saw more of him—the whole picture—his pain, his resilience. “You’d never mentioned your childhood before.”
“It’s not something I talk about much.” He leaned back into the cushions, sighing. “I don’t exactly have great memories of growing up. Thinking about the past always puts me in a mood. But I shouldn’t have said what I did about deserving better.” His expression softened. “There is no one better than you, Tess.”
And there went her heart again, doubling, tripling, quadrupling, in both size and tenderness for him. “Youdodeserve better than to be hidden away like you don’t matter.” She inched closer to him. As close as she could without touching him. She would touch him eventually—she had to. But first there were a few more things she had to tell him. “I need you to know that I’m not keeping what happened between us a secret only because I’m afraid of what other people will think.” She closed her eyes to concentrate on stabilizing her breathing. When she opened them again, Silas had straightened, leaning in toward her slightly, waiting, hoping.
“I understand how it may have seemed that way,” she continued. “But I realized that I’m keeping the secret because I don’t know what to do with my feelings for you.” She dropped her gaze to her hands so she could get through this.
“I never planned to feel this way again. I know Jace’s letter told me I should, but I didn’t want to. And then something happened. I started to think about you. Long before we spent the night together.” She peeked into his eyes again. “I noticed I always looked forward to seeing you. And when we were all together in a group, sometimes I could only focus on you.” And yet she kept downplaying all of those things as if she could simply will the yearnings of her heart to go away.
“I love how you always make me laugh.” Confidence bolstered her words. He needed to know this. He needed to know how much she valued him, how much she cared for him. “I love how you’re always quietly stepping in to help people—like Minnie and Louie at the café. And you spent this whole evening in my kitchen.” Making her margaritas because he knew she loved them and then taking care of all the cleanup himself. “I love that you’re loyal and dedicated and that you want to make the world a better place.” She could keep going on, but his stare into her eyes was growing stronger and bolder and her breath failed her. “Silas, I feel this intensely strong connection with you.” She couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. “I don’t know what it means… or if I will ever be able to fully love someone again. I don’t know a lot of things. But I can’t bear for you to think that I’m hiding because I’m ashamed of you. I’m hiding because I’m afraid.”
He didn’t say anything. He simply moved closer to her and wrapped her up in his arms.
Tess let her cheek rest against his chest and let go of a sigh she hadn’t realized she’d been holding back. A few more tears slipped out, sprinkling his shirt. But she didn’t move. She closed her eyes and focused on the rhythm of his breathing, the sound of his heart beating quickly but steadily in time with her own.
“I don’t know a lot of things either,” he murmured into her hair. “But I feel that connection too. And the harder I try to deny it, the stronger it gets.” He leaned back, looking at her with a new vulnerability.
“Then maybe we should stop denying it.” She rose to her knees on the couch in front of him, bringing her face level with his. “And let ourselves see where this connection leads us.” She kissed him, just a slow, small brush of her lips over his, but that simple touch ignited her body.
“I can’t wait to see where it leads us,” Silas whispered against her lips. He pressed into the kiss again, luring her into a dream, guiding her mouth to open to his. Tess inched forward, straddling his waist, settling into his lap while she clasped her hands at the base of his neck. This time the kiss was different. Slow and savoring, as if they had all the time in the world to explore each other. Tess relaxed into him, her senses consumed with Silas, the minty-ness of his mouth, the scent of his woodsy cologne.
But she wanted more. Not only a kiss. Not only sex. She wantedhim.
Tess eased herself off of his lap and somehow stood with her knees quaking in the best possible way. “Come on.” She tugged on his hand, pulling him up with her. “Let’s let this connection lead us to my room.”
Silas broke out laughing. “Now that was cheesy.” He slid his hands down to her hips, holding her close.
“No, it wasn’t.” Her laugh betrayed the feeble argument. It had been a while since she’d engaged in any sexy talk. So, yes, maybe she was out of practice.
“Trust me, Tess. That was a cheesy line.” He kissed her jaw. “But I liked it.” His lips moved down to her neck. “I likeyou.”
“I like you too.” She whispered the words in his ear, all breathy and hot. “Let me show you how much I like you.” Pressing her hands to his muscled chest, she nudged him toward the hallway that led to her bedroom. With each step they took, another article of clothing dropped to the floor between kisses—his shirt, her shirt. His belt. Her bra.
Outside of her bedroom door, Tess kicked off her shoes. Silas followed suit and by the time they made it to the bed, only their jeans were left.
“You’re sure about this?” He caressed her shoulders. “It’s not too late to turn back.”
Tess held her hands on either side of his face. “I’m sure.” She was done hiding. “I’mverysure.” She kissed him with a greater urgency, her breath hitching when he unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her hips.
Tess stepped out of the pants and kicked them aside. “Sit.” She pushed on Silas’s shoulders until he sat on the bed in front of her.
She straddled his lap and reached around into his back jean pocket, pulling out his wallet to find a condom and then placing it next to him on the bed.
Silas touched his lips to the center of her collarbone, kissing and caressing his way across her chest while her head tipped back.
“You’re the best thing I’ve ever tasted,” he murmured against her skin.
