Never Been Kissed

“Oh my god!” I cover my face hoping the heated blush is also my imagination.

“I like when you blurt what’s on your mind out loud. Saves me from wondering.” Van practically preens on the other end of the screen while I struggle to regain my wits. This man.

His voice drops as he looks intently at me. “I dream of doing dark and dirty things to you.”

I cover my face completely peeking out from between fingers. Nope. He?

??s still on the call, but he’s leaning back in his big bed arms crossed covering his god-like looking chest. His comment should feel creepy, but it’s fired a shot of need, want, and desire straight between my legs.

Van mutters. “Now I just feel all porny.”

“Well no one said you had to take your shirt off.”

“So I should put it back on?” He reaches for the cotton.

I wave my arms in a ridiculous attempt to stop him.

“What? No! Of course not.”

Van pouts. “I feel completely objectified.”

No he doesn’t.

I know for a fact he swims daily or at least he did until his pool closed. His body hasn’t been suffering one bit from his treadmill workouts that I can tell since this whole world went to hell.

Taking a fortifying breath I adjust myself sitting cross legged on my bed and reach for the hem of my t-shirt. I say a tiny prayer that my lace bra is doing me justice and slowly lift my top. This is it, my big reveal and my heart pounds as my hands sweat. I cross my big toes where he can’t see and pray no one in my house walks in right now.

What will he think?

What will he do?

“Wait.” Van’s command halts my hands.

My eyes pop open.

“What now?” I grumble. “I thought we were doing this?” I check down the V of my shirt and my pink lace bra looks fine. Better than fine, but he won’t see it if I keep my top on.

“You don’t have to do this, you know that right? I’m just being playful. Inappropriate.”

“Is this going to be one of those I’m your boss now things, because I thought we worked that out.” I cock my head to the side trying to gauge where his sudden change of mind is coming from.

I whisper, “HR doesn’t have to know, right?” I feel a bead of sweat form between my breasts and my anxiety ramps up.

“I’d kind of like to try something, but only if you into it. No pressure.”

Pausing, I think for a moment nibbling my lip. I’m about to bite my thumbnail but think better of it and shove my hands under my butt.

“Okay?” I say it like a question. I want to see where Van is going with this.

“How do you feel about phone sex?” Van’s voice drops a notch in a way that makes my panties wet and my legs squirm. I swear this man lives to throw me off kilter with his wild open-ended questions. It’s a moment like this that I wish I had a desk chair to swirl around in to give me something to do. Instead I’m perched awkwardly on the end of my bed in my tiny room.

“Laurel?”

“Ummm.” I’m caught completely off guard by Van’s question. I know what phone sex is, but I’ve never done it let alone had the other kind, the real kind between sheets and bodies and hot…I fan myself because while it isn’t ninety degrees in here it sure feels like it.

“Laurel?”

“Van.”