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Zoe laughed. “You could come back in and show me just how much.”
Without a word, I leaned down and snagged her bikini top, tossing it back into the pool.
“Sweet dreams, darling,” I told her. “I’ll be locking my door tonight so you don’t think about sneaking in.”
She crossed her arms and stood up, water streaming down her glorious chest, and holy fucking hell, she was a vision. “As if I’d give you that satisfaction now.”
I grinned, notching my fingers against my temple. “See you in the morning.”
With a whistle, I walked back into the house.
Behind me, she let out an ear-blistering curse. She might have wanted to kill me now, but her reaction was exactly what I’d been aiming for.
Zoe was right that I couldn’t erase her fears. But maybe I could help a little.
I was still smiling when I closed myself into the guest room and turned the lock.
Chapter Twenty-Five
LIAM
Despite the way my brain was buzzing when I crawled into bed, I slept like a rock. But when I woke, the sun hadn’t even begun to rise, and the sky was still dark. There were messages on my phone when I turned it over to check the time, and I laughed quietly. She’d sent them after midnight, which meant she’d been lying awake long after she’d gone to bed.
Zoe:Ican’t believe you made me go to bed alone. Is this where I’d call you a twat? I’m still learning British slang.
Zoe:We could’ve CUDDLED. It’s not like I only want to use you for sex, though I’m excited about that too.
Zoe:Is that a first-date activity? It wouldn’t normally be for me. But we’ve basically had months of foreplay, and I think all normal date boundaries should be reevaluated under these types of circumstances.
With a smile, I typed out a quick reply.
Me:Patience, love.
As I stared at the ceiling, I laid a hand over my chest and registered the heated glow seeping through there. This was such a new, foreign landscape to me in every regard. The flirting, the anticipation, that aching warmth only she seemed to leave in her wake. With a deep breath, I rolled out of bed and scrubbed my hands over my face. The day alreadyseemed both eternally long and not long enough, because I wasn’t quite sure how I was supposed to be ready for this. For her.
And maybe that was the point. I’d never really be ready. Never really feel like this was something I could do. But for her, I would try.
I hopped into the shower, leaning my frame up against the tile, hot water pouring down over my body while I wrapped my hand around myself and imagined a completely different ending to our conversation in the pool last night. Imagined the ending she’d wanted.
Slick, wet skin.
Panting moans in my ear.
Her legs tight around my waist.
We’d have left the pool and stumbled inside, found the nearest flat surface.
The images came faster and harder then, as I imagined Zoe in every position that I wanted to try. But the thing that took me over the edge, the very thing that I wanted most, was her under me, atop a big, soft bed with plenty of room and the lights on so I could see every bloody detail.
I groaned her name after less than ten minutes, hanging my head under the blistering water as my chest heaved.
I’d need to take four showers before this date if I expected to keep my hands off her. When I emerged from the steamy bathroom and wrapped a towel around my waist, I felt more clearheaded.
More than that, I was excited about where the day might lead. It was fucking terrifying.
The house felt different when I walked through the dark kitchen to put on the coffee. Hovering on the edge of such a massive change, it felt more like a home than any I’d had since I moved to the States. Slowly, so slowly I’d hardly noticed, it had become ours. When had that happened?
Zoe wouldn’t be up until Mira woke, which was probably for the best. I wanted her to think about the possibilities all day, just like I would be.
