Southern Heat (Southern 6)

Again, he is the one to stop the kiss, and I wonder if I’m doing it wrong. “We have to get out of here before I pull you into the back, and we spend all night here.” I look down, trying to hide the fact that my cheeks are burning. I step into the truck and watch as he closes the door.

He gets into the truck, and I turn to look at him when he pulls out of the parking lot. The number of cars has almost doubled since we got here, yet all I saw was Quinn. All I ever see is Quinn. The ride back to his house is quiet. My head goes around and around with things I want to tell him. Things he needs to know. Things I want to share with him.

“I’ve kissed one guy my whole life,” I say, and he looks over at me. “When I turned sixteen.” He doesn’t say anything knowing that I’m not finished. “I kissed him so I could control who I kissed. It was the only thing I got to choose in my life.” I shake my head, thinking about it. “I wasted my first kiss.” I look at him. “I didn’t want to kiss him. But I did anyway. But you, Quinn,” I say his name, and I look up at him. I’m waiting to see him look at me differently. “You, I want to kiss. I want to kiss you all the time. I want to kiss you in the morning when we walk to the barn. I want to kiss you at night when we sit in the swing, and you have your arm around me. I want to kiss you when we sit on the couch, and I watch television,” I admit to him, and now that I’ve let it all out there, I can’t stop. “Also, I hate watching television. I’d rather sit with you and just be with you.”

“Is that so?” he says, chuckling.

“Um, yeah,” I admit. My heart speeds up, and I’m not sure my mouth will listen to my brain when it tells me not to tell him the rest. But my mouth wins out this time. “And I want to hold your hand, but not at the barn because I don’t want people to think I’m trying to lure you to my bed.” He shakes his head and laughs. “It’s not funny, Quinn.”

“Okay,” he says, looking at me with his back to the door of his truck. “Number one, I don’t even know what I put on the television. I put anything that I think will make you stay with me. Number two, I want to wake up with you in my arms every single morning. I want to walk to the barn with you holding your hand. Number three, I don’t give a fuck who sees me hold your hand because I don’t think you’ve been paying attention, Willow,” he says, and I just look at him. “It’s you,” he whispers. “It’s always been you. It will always be you.”

My heart soars in my chest and I can’t help the smile that forms. “Now can we go inside and …”

“And make out?” I ask him, hoping he says yes, I have never been this forward before.

“Oh, we are definitely going to make out,” he says, opening his door and I jump out of the truck, grabbing the dog. He is there as soon as I put my feet on the ground and pushes me against the truck. “If you want to stop,” he says. “All you have to do is say the word.”

“Quinn,” I say as he presses his chest into me. “Kiss me,” I say and he bends his head. He rubs his nose up and down mine before tilting his head to the side and opening his mouth on mine. I wrap my arm around his neck while my tongue comes out to meet his. He wraps his arm around my waist and picks me up as if I weigh two pounds. My feet don’t touch the ground and my lips never leave his as he walks us into the house. Once the door closes behind us, he slowly lowers me to the floor. Once my feet touch the floor, I let go of his lips. Our chests are pounding as I step away from him.

“From the minute that you rescued me, you have never left my side.” I start to tell him, and my hand comes up so I can touch his face. My finger trails his chin. “I didn’t know what to think having you there.” I swallow down the lump in my throat. “But knowing you were there, I felt safe. Which is crazy because I didn’t know you and you didn’t know me, yet I knew that you wouldn’t let anything happen to me.”