Touch Me - A Forbidden Romance

“Freya?” Elijah said in a shocked voice and moved a step closer. Without breaking eye contact, he placed the bottle in the basket he held, grinned, and she about lost all common sense as she took in the flash of straight white teeth. He was so handsome, so masculine and powerful looking. He was tall, much taller than she was, and when he was right in front of her, the scent of his cologne had her slightly dizzy.

What’s wrong with you?

“Elijah…” She swallowed again, her throat feeling dry and scratchy. “It’s been a long time.”

His smile faded, and he nodded. “Four years.” His voice was so deep, so manly. A shiver worked its way through her body. “You look the same.” He took a step back and slid his gaze up and down the length of her body. Although she knew it was probably innocent, she couldn’t help the heat that washed through her. “You look so grown up, not like the girl who left for college four years ago.”

She felt her cheeks heat, knew she was blushing, but she couldn’t help it. The way he looked at her, as innocent as it may be, made her feel on display. She wasn’t this teenager looking at Elijah in a friendly manner. Licking her lips, she tried to smile without it looking awkward. “Thank you?” she asked it as a question and started chuckling when he grinned.

She felt a little foolish, but the longer she stood here with him, the more she grew comfortable. There was this little feeling throughout her body—a tingling, a warmth … an electrifying sensation. She didn’t know any other word for it except arousal and awareness, and that made her feel bad and a little unnerved. She shouldn’t want Elijah, not like this, not with this heat moving through her.

“It’s a good thing,” he said, then cleared his throat. He lowered his gaze to the alcohol she had in her cart and the six-pack she held. “Are you hosting a party?”

She looked at the bottles of wine and shook her head, smiling. This was going to sound bad. “No, no party. It’s all for me.” She looked at him, and her smile widened.

He lifted a brow, clearly confused or amused as to why she’d have so much liquor.

“My mother’s wine rack.” It didn’t take him long to realize what she meant.

He nodded once, and for a second, the silence stretched between them, slightly thick, very tense, and she knew maybe he was thinking about the past. She sure as hell was.

She cleared her throat. “Well, I better go.”

He didn’t say anything at first.

“It was great seeing you, Elijah.” When she went to turn away, he took a step toward her, stopping her.

“Listen, it’s been a long time, a really long time. How about dinner? We can catch up?”

Her heart started beating faster, the thoughts she had of them eating dinner with candles between them, the past not at the surface, and just the two of them making her feel like a silly schoolgirl.

“It’s just dinner, Freya,” he said and smiled.

“I’d like that. I’d really like that, Elijah.”

He exhaled deeply, almost as if he’d been holding his breath. “Is your number still the same?”

She nodded.

“How about I call you tomorrow, and we can set something up?”

“Okay.” She felt so out of place right now, and she hated that. This was Elijah, and she shouldn’t feel weird or awkward around him. But the fact remained she wasn’t having the friendliest of feelings toward him right now.

The thoughts rushing through her head weren’t exactly innocent. It was strange feeling anything more than affection toward Elijah, and although she’d thought he was so handsome back in the day, she had never even considered or thought about crossing that line. But now, now she was thinking about crossing that line.

It was foolish, and she needed to leave to get her head on straight.

“I look forward to talking to you again. Elijah,” she said with a slightly shaky voice. Before she could move toward or away from him, Elijah stepped closer, had his basket on the ground, and had her in his arms. He gave her a big hug—wrapped his big, strong, and muscular arms around her—and Freya closed her eyes. It felt so good to be in his arms she actually closed her eyes.

“It’s really good to see you, like a breath of fresh air,” he said and then chuckled. “I swear I didn’t mean for that to come out as creepy as it did.”

It was her turn to laugh now. They broke away. She nodded because she didn’t know what to say, then she lifted her hand in a wave and left. After she checked out and was back in her car, she rested her head on the seat and closed her eyes.