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“Or maybe it’s because we’ve gotten to know each other.”
She shrugs, saying, “Maybe.” But her green eyes sparkle with amusement. She’s adorable.
“I had a lot of fun with you on the beach. We’ll have to do it again soon.”
“I did too, even though my legs might still be numb from the water.”
“Yeah, it was cold, but it always is. Since I’ve been living there and swimming more, I’ve grown used to the initial shock and then it doesn’t seem so bad.”
“It felt pretty damn cold to me.”
“How often do you go in the water?”
“Never.”
I laugh. “You live near the beach but don’t go in the ocean? How does that work?”
Her shoulder lifts in a half shrug. “I have to be careful of burning, and being in the water always seems to make it worse.”
“You’re not burnt from yesterday.”
“I put industrial strength sunscreen on at home, plus it was later in the day.”
“Do you tan at all?”
She scrunches her nose. “Nope. My freckles just start to connect.”
“I love your freckles. Someday, I’m going to trace over every single one of them with my tongue.”
She chokes on a bite of food and coughs a few times. She clears her throat. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“I’m sorry for my bad timing but I’m not sorry I said it. You should know that’s one of my new goals.”
“Licking my freckles?”
“Amongst other things.”And the sooner it happens, the better.“How does knowing that make you feel?”
She wipes her mouth with a napkin and sets it back in her lap. “Conflicted.”
“How so?” I push half a slice of bacon between my lips and chew.
“On one hand, I think I’d like it to happen, and on the other, I don’t.” She shakes her head. “No, that’s not true. Why wouldn’t I want you to make me feel good? But just because I want something, it doesn’t mean it’s a solid choice.”
“You have plenty of time to think about it. It’s not like I’m going to splay you out right here and lick your naked body until you’re writhing with need.” Her gaze lowers to the table between us, as if she’s imagining it happening. When her eyes meet mineonce more, her cheeks look slightly flushed. “Unless you want me to,” I add, winking.
The waitress stops by to check in on us, putting an end to my teasing. Neither Autumn nor I are in need of anything more, so she leaves the check and heads to another table.
“We’re splitting the bill,” Autumn tells me.
My eyebrows draw together. “Like hell we are. I invited you.”
Her mouth falls open, then closes before she can articulate any words. “But we decided to spend time together as friends. So we should each pay half.”
“Please, let me get this. There’s no chance I’m going to let you pay. It goes against everything my dad taught me about being a gentleman.” Her expression is flat as she scrutinizes me. I can’t tell what she’s thinking or what her answer will be.
“Okay,” she finally agrees.
“Thank you.”
