I was tired. Too tired for the conversation but too curious to stop.
“Exactly how many sides do you have?”
He took a step closer to me and my heart rate quickened as he did so. In a soft voice he said, “I'm just me, Leah.”
As I stood rooted to the spot, he slowly leaned in towards me.
“What would happen if I kissed you?” he asked, his mouth so close to my skin that his warm breath tickled my neck.
I couldn't speak. He hadn't even touched me, but I could feel him. I closed my eyes against the sensations that were spreading through me just from his nearness but it was too strong to fight off this time. As I opened my eyes again, I tilted my head upwards to look at him, but an image of Taylor’s sobbing face flashed into my mind, making me take a step back.
“What would happen if I said no?”
I willed my body to stop wanting him. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that he looked so good, or that he was making it so easy for me to give in.
“If you say no, we’ll both go to bed disappointed. We’ll fight, we’ll talk, and then we’ll end up here again.”
“But what if I don’t want to keep ending up here?”
“If you didn’t want to,” he said, taking a small step closer to me, “you wouldn’t still be here talking about it.”
I could see the fire in his eyes, but he didn’t make another move. He was giving me the choice. To do something, or to walk away. I reached out and slowly ran a finger down his chest to his abs. My eyes didn't leave his for a second.
I wanted to touch him, I wanted to run away, I wanted to kiss him, I wanted to hit him.
My choice.
My finger gently traced the contours of his stomach, dancing across every muscle, tingling at the softness of his skin.
Decision made.
My lips followed, leaving a trail of soft kisses up to his chest.
Just when I thought I might die from the anticipation of him touching me, McCoy rested his hands on my hips and drew me into him. With one brief look of understanding between us, his lips pressed down against mine, and I wrapped my arms around his back, a small sigh of relief escaping me as his tongue slid into my mouth.
Everything I’d been fighting against for the past few weeks fell away. There wasn’t a thought in my head except for the realisation that the feelings I’d tried to push away were impossible to ignore.
His hands slid underneath my t-shirt and I shivered as he touched my bare skin. His touch was firm but gentle and he slowly lifted me off the ground, his lips not leaving mine for a second. As I wrapped my legs around his waist, he carried me out of the living room, and towards my bedroom.
.
Chapter 12: Last Night Was Wonderful, I Love You
My head was pounding.
As I opened my eyes, the light streaming in through the gap in the curtains made me squint at the brightness. After blinking several times, I glanced at the clock. Eight forty-two. I calculated that I’d only slept for about three and a half hours.
I squeezed my eyes closed again, trying to ease the banging in my skull, but it didn't work.
I wanted nothing more than to pull my duvet over my head and sleep for the rest of the day, and it was at precisely that moment I realised why it couldn't happen.
The ache in my temples had distracted me from the gentle breathing which originated, not from me, but from underneath me. For a second I couldn’t move.
I’d woken up after having spent a night sleeping on top of Radleigh McCoy.
His arms were still around me, one hand on my lower back, just underneath the t-shirt I’d hastily thrown back on – proving Brits truly are uptight about nudity.
After the things we’d done together, it was ridiculous that I felt the need to cover up.