Lip Service (Private Relations 2)

Walking over to her, he wrapped his arms around her and said, “If you want to stay, I’d be very amenable to that. I wasn’t asking your plans as a segue to kicking you out.”

He felt her relax against him, and then she said, “‘Kay. In any case, I really can’t stay much longer. I have a paper to write.”

Nodding, he asked, “What’s your schedule looking like this week?”

Tilting her head to the side, she thought for a minute then said, “Monday is insane. I’m wrapping up a project. Tuesday I’ll be getting destroyed at CrossFit. Not sure about the rest, yet.”

“Monday and Tuesday are clearly out. How about Wednesday I come to you and we order in or something? I don’t think I’ve seen your place since you moved last,” he said.

Nodding, she said, “Yeah. That could work.”

Reaching up, she brushed her lips against his and said, “I’ve gotta get going now. Fifteen pages of case study are calling my name.”

Releasing her, he said, “You’re a wild woman. Don’t know how I’m going to keep up.”

Shooting him a nasty look over her shoulder, she walked out of the room and left him there, sipping his coffee.

He was surprised that she hadn’t pushed a conversation about their status yet. He was glad, too, though. Maybe she wasn’t one of those girls who wanted to talk things to death. Finishing his cup of coffee, he moved the empty cup to the dishwasher, just as she walked back into the kitchen fully dressed now.

“

Walk me out?” she asked.

He followed her out to the living room, watching her slide on her shoes and grab her purse, then trailed after her to the door. Opening the door, he walked out into the driveway barefoot. When they reached her car, he tugged her forward into his arms and pressed his mouth to hers.

When her lips softened under his, he slid his tongue into her mouth, stroking over hers until he heard a low moan in the back of her throat. Tightening his hands on her, he deepened the kiss some.

Feeling her press more firmly against him, he roughly said, “Much more of this and you’re not leaving any time soon. Fair warning.”

He felt her pull back slightly, a reluctant look on her face. She said, “Tempting offer. You have no idea how tempting.”

He slid his hands down to her hips, and brought her lower body into contact with his erection and smiled, saying, “I may have some idea.”

Backing up, he released her and said, “But you’ve got a paper to write.

Looking torn now, she said, “You don’t play fair.”

He felt his mouth pull into a grin, and he said, “Playing fair is no fun.”

Stepping toward her now, he brushed his lips against her and said, “Last night was incredible. Thank you. Now, get out of here before I decide to keep you.”

She smiled and said, “No. Thank you. You’re right though. I gotta go. Talk to you later?”

Nodding, he said, “Yeah. I’ll call you.”

He watched her now as she dug through her purse, grabbing her keys and unlocking her car. As she slid inside, he felt a vague sense of regret that she was leaving. Still, he continued to watch her back out and then moved to head back inside once she’d driven off.

Chapter 9

As she drove down the street, she exhaled and said, “Holy shit.”

Immediately, she plugged in her cell phone to charge in the car, then dialed Kelli on speaker. After three rings, Kelli picked up and said, “You slut! Are you just leaving his place now?”

Laughing, Chloe said, “Yes. Just wanted to let you know I’m alive. I saw your eleven thousand texts last night.”

“Well,” Kelli asked, “How did it go?”

“It went really well,” Chloe said.