AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He’s…nice to me. That’s more than I can say for you.” She lowered her head, and her hair fell around her face like a curtain. “Just quit texting me, all right?”
I could be nice. “You didn’t have to respond. I would have gotten the hint.”
She straightened again and closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. I swore I heard her ask for patience. “I can’t just…not respond.”
Because she couldn’t ignore it either. That something was off. That the man she was out with was downright wrong for her.
My heart was yelling at my brain that this just was not right.
I dropped my voice and dipped low to meet her eyes. “Why do you think that is?”
She picked at her painted nails, refusing to look at me. “Because I hate unread notifications.”
With every denial, my heart sank just like my stomach had. “Or because you’re avoiding something?”
She snapped her head up, her eyes wide. Like she was surprised that I had the guts to say exactly what we were both thinking. I could see it in her too. She felt this pull. There was no way she couldn’t. It was magnetic, electric. Like an inevitable force bringing us closer, and the harder we fought it, the stronger it grew.
I homed in on her lips, so full and sweet. Lipstick perfectly applied. I wanted nothing more than to smear it entirely. She didn’t put that lipstick on for you…
The door opened, then, startling us both. Shoes clicked across the tile, and a man whistled as he made his way into the stall beside ours. Marigold’s eyes widened, and in an instant, her arms were around my neck. Before I could register the contact, before I could relish the sensation of being held by her again, she was jumping, wrapping her legs around my waist, and hooking her ankles at the small of my back.
Unprepared, I stumbled back, and in an attempt to regain my balance, I spun and pressed her against the wall. Suddenly, I was very aware of the way we were linked together. My legs between hers, her arms looped around my neck.
“Hey, man. Sorry, I’m at dinner so I couldn’t answer. About those squirrels. What I would do is—”
The man’s one-sided conversation in the stall beside us probably would have made me laugh had I not been mesmerized by Marigold’s face up close. Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I surveyed her. Took in every detail. Her smooth skin, the freckles. Those long lashes and the way they brushed her cheekbones. The flush creeping up her cheeks. The heat in her eyes I swore was more desire than anger in this moment.
Then, with a blink, the heat was replaced by shock, and her jaw dropped open. Like she’d just realized what she’d done. How she’d jumped me like a wild animal.
With my hands on her hips to keep her steady, I grinned at her, ready to make a joke, but she quickly affected the glare she saved specifically for me and slapped a hand to my mouth, ensuring my silence.
If she wouldn’t let me tell her what I was thinking, then I’d show her. I released my grip on one of her hips and ghosted my fingers down her leg to where her ankle was resting at my back. There, I traced slow circles. My thumb, probably callused from the gym and all the work I’d done fixing up the house, brushed against her smooth, soft skin right next to her shoe’s buckle. Goose bumps erupted beneath my touch. She had always been so responsive.
Her mouth opened slightly, eyelids heavy. So it wasn’t just me, then…
I leaned in farther, sharing her air, so our mouths were inches apart. I waited there, giving her time to push me away or go back to glaring. But she stayed silent, watching me with this soft expression. All warm eyes, plump lips, and pink cheeks. I’d never wanted anything as much as I wanted to press my lips to hers.
Her perfume was unfamiliar, adding an enticing juxtaposition to the familiar feel of her body pressed to mine. It was floral, fruity, sweet…Goldie. The walking sunshine I’d once known.
Just as I angled forward, ready to take what I wanted, what I needed, Marigold pushed her back off the wall, pressing her chest to mine. Her lips parted slightly, and she tilted to the right.
Was she going to kiss me? My night had just gotten a hundred times better than I could have imagined.
She trailed her fingers along my nape, through the short hairs, dragging her nails seductively across my skin, sending bolts of electricity coursing through me. So…close…
It was hard to breathe. My tie was too tight. I had this caveman urge to rip the whole thing off my neck so I could relax into her. All this time, I’d thought I had a leg up on her. I should’ve known I didn’t stand a chance.
Did she really want this? Crave it like I had been for so long?
All coherent thought left me when her lips ghosted against mine. The touch was so light I thought maybe I’d imagined it. A small feather grazing against my mouth. She was going to kiss me. My heavy eyelids fully sank as I anticipated more pressure. I needed more—
The stall door next to us slammed closed with a jarring sound. The man who’d been on his phone was now exiting the restroom.
I jerked back, heart lodged in my throat as my mind came back online. For an instant, I looked away, peering through the small crack around the stall door, ensuring we were alone. When I turned back to Marigold, her eyes were wide and glassy, stuck in this thousand-yard stare like she couldn’t believe what she’d done either.
Don’t regret it. Not now. Not when we were so close.
I swallowed thickly and opened my mouth, but before I could speak, she pressed a firm finger against my lips.
