I narrowed my eyes on his hand, wondering exactly how I felt about it on my knee. I was by no means a prude, but by allowing it I was sending a signal that I was interested. Moments stretched into seconds and seconds into minutes as I allowed his hand to stay. It was neither ignored nor forgotten as each minute slowly passed and the warmth of his hand heated my leg beneath it. I felt like a preteen on my first date with a guy I was crushing on. Back when each brush of his skin against yours would send your pulse racing and make your palms sweaty. Each time he removed it to shift gears on the jeep he would return to the original position on my knee, distracting me all over again.
“Ready?” he asked, breaking into my knee trance.
“What?” I asked confused, pulling my mind back to reality. “Oh, we’re back,” I said as I spotted my dorm.
“You okay?” he asked, cutting the engine.
“Just tired, I guess,” I answered lamely.
He looked disappointed at my words, but nodded like he understood and climbed from the vehicle. I mentally kicked myself for my uncouth response as he made his way around the vehicle and opened my door. His chivalry didn’t go unnoticed, especially since the last guy I dated not only didn’t open doors for me, but actually let a door slam in my face as he walked through ahead of me. Melissa didn’t even try to reason with me on that one. “Only a dickhead would allow a door to slam in the face of his date.” Her words, not mine.
“You don’t have to walk me all the way up,” I told him, trying to regain some of my common sense as I climbed down from the vehicle.
He looked at me incredulously. “Do you really think I’d just drop you off?”
“It’s not as foreign a thought as you would think. I figured it was the whole I’m-a-college-guy-and-chicks-are-lucky-to-be-with-me mentality.”
He mumbled something about missing out, but I couldn’t quite catch it. I thought I caught kiss and dumb-ass losers, but I couldn’t be sure.
“I had a lot of fun today,” I surprised myself by admitting as we reached the front door of my building.
“Was there ever any doubt?” he teased, lightly tugging at my hand until I was standing in the embrace of his arms.
I snorted out an unattractive laugh. “Have you missed my track record? There’s always doubt when it comes to dates and me,” I joked, trying to appear casual even though his face was suddenly inches from mine. I could make out each line and curve that made his lips look so delectable. I wanted to kiss him and yet I was scared. Kissing was hit-or-miss for me and everything seemed to hinge on it. Today had been pretty close to perfect, but what if he turned out to be one of those kinds of kissers. The ones who tried to eat your entire face and felt it was their job to slather you in saliva—or he could be one of those kissers who used his tongue like a weapon, and not in a good way. In my mind, kissing was an art form, not an assault. Lips should be soft and gentle at first, while the tongue cautiously introduces itself. Only after they’ve met and hit it off should they become more commanding and take charge.
“Hey, where did you go?” Justin asked, breaking into my lip-trance.
“Uh, what?” I asked, dragging my mind away from his lips.
“You totally seemed to fog out there.”
“Sorry. I was thinking about an assignment I should probably work on tonight,” I lied, meeting his eyes.
“Really?” he asked. He called my bluff as his own eyes wandered down to my lips.
“Yes,” I said with bated breath as he moved closer.
“Because it sure looked like you were focused on something else,” he teased, leaning in so his mouth was a hair away from mine. “You sure you weren’t thinking of something else?” he asked as his warm breath fanned across my face.
“Like what?” I asked, unwilling to give him the satisfaction.
“Like maybe this,” he said, placing his lips firmly on mine.
The instant our lips touched, any doubts about what kind of kisser he would be flew from my mind like a kite caught in a sudden gust of wind. His lips were every bit as lush and soft as they looked. I responded to his touch like I had never been touched before. My lips felt desirable and special as he treated them like a rare delicacy. His hands found my hips and he pulled me in closer. My own hands crept up his chest until they were gripping his jacket in knotted fists. Without breaking the kiss, he slowly backed us into the shadows of the building. The small part of my brain that could form a rational thought was thankful for his foresight, only to be quickly shut off as he coaxed my lips open. His tongue slowly found mine as he seduced my mouth and my senses. Everything faded away as I lost myself in the slow burn of desire that was multiplying through every cell in my body.
After a moment, he pulled away as I tried to catch my breath.
“I knew kissing you would be hot,” he said, resting his forehead against mine.
“I’m glad it wasn’t one-sided,” I admitted, still gripping his jacket.
He chuckled. “I’ve wanted to kiss you since you gave me attitude the first time we met. I’ve been dying to know what those bossy lips felt like.”
“Bossy?” I said, shoving at his chest halfheartedly.
He captured my hands in his, pulling me close. “I like that you were bossy. The girls who normally want to hang around me always turn into giggling bobbleheads.”
“That’s because you have a way of reducing girls to blithering idiots,” I admitted.