Page 28 of Silver Lining Love

That kiss. It had been more passionate, more intimate, more fulfilling than most of the sex I’d had. I wasn’t sure how that was possible since I didn’t engage in casual sex. But somehow it was. None of my boyfriends had ever made my body feel like that before.

From the moment our lips touched it was like my entire body was electrified and simultaneously soothed. It made zero sense. The kiss had felt like a giant hug to my soul while at the same time lighting up every single molecule in my body with arousal. It was both safe and exhilarating at the same time.

I sucked in a shaky breath as I lifted my arm and touched my bottom lip. If I closed my eyes, I could still feel his lips against mine.

I’d wanted to kiss Wyatt for five and a half years. I’d seen him kiss his exes, Lisa and Bree, dozens of times and wished that I was the girl on the receiving end of his smooches. I’d never shown that I was jealous or envious of the women in his life. I’d tried to play it cool whenever I’d seen him with a girlfriend or the subject of the women in his life came up, but that was just to disguise the fact that I was really a big ol’ green-eyed monster. Outwardly I appeared like it didn’t bother me, but inwardly, I was dying to be the one in his arms, in his bed, and in his heart.

I’d fantasized that it was me Wyatt was making out with more times than I could count. I’d visualized it in meticulous detail. I’d run through hundreds of possible first-kiss scenarios. Some were more realistic than others. Did I actually think I’d be in Paris shooting for a brand deal and he’d fly to Europe to interrupt my shoot, declare his love for me, and plant one on me in front of the Eiffel Tower? No, but it had been a nice fantasy.

But even that outlandish rom-com scenario hadn’t come close to the magic of what actually happened. Nothing had prepared me for that.

Wyatt’s masterful lips were the perfect combination of firm and tender. His velvety tongue caressed mine in a sensual rhythm. Our kiss felt like a choreographed dance or a concerto. Like theNutcrackerperformed by the Bolshoi Balletor Beethoven’s Violin Concerto.

The bar had been set last night for every kiss I would have for the rest of my life, and somehow, I doubted that any would be able to meet it.

The ding of the coffee maker snapped me out of my reliving of the moment. I grabbed a mug from the cabinet. As I poured my cup, I tried to reason away the experience.

I was sure that the kiss had only felt like that because of the build-up. Foreplay was a powerful aphrodisiac, and as far as I was concerned, from the first time I’d seen Wyatt Briggs walking out to his truck on the day I moved in, every second had been foreplay.

I’ll never forget that day. Everything was going wrong. The movers never showed up, and I’d gotten a call from Addi that she, Ben, and Mikey had all come down with the flu. I’d been stuck with a truck full of my things and no way to get them inside. I would have been SOL if Wyatt hadn’t helped me.

He was a man. A real man. With hair on his chest, and muscles that looked like they were formed from manual labor and not just a gym. He was a man who kept his word and had integrity. He didn’t make false promises. If he said he was going to do something, he did it.

I can’t believe I’d ever been worried that if we ever did hookup, there was no way that the experience could live up to my expectations. Our kiss had far surpassed anything that I’d ever believed was even possible.

A thrill raced down my spine at the memory, and I felt a jolt of tingles that were just as effective as the caffeine I was about to ingest.

“Aunt Whitney, did you see my math homework?” Mikey asked as he walked directly to the kitchen table where he did his homework each day.

Yes.I saved it from becoming one of Alice’s art projects. I kept that little tidbit of information to myself.

“It’s in your backpack.”

“Thanks!” He smiled brightly.

A thanks and a smile? Had aliens come in the night and invaded my nephew? I had to pick my jaw up off the floor.

I wanted to ask him again what the fight had been about since I hadn’t been able to get it out of him, and neither had Wyatt. I didn’t want to do anything to spoil his amiable demeanor, but I did feel it needed to be addressed.

“Listen, Mikey, I just want you to know that you don’t have to tell me what the fight was about, but I’m here if you ever want to talk about it.”

He looked down at the ground and shrugged. “It’s stupid.”

“Okay.”

“Some of the guys thought it was funny to spy on the girls in the bathroom. And I just thought, what if that was Alice in there? So I told them to stop it, and when they didn’t stop, I told them I was going to tell the girls. That’s when Kieran punched me. And then I punched him back. A lot. I didn’t mean to hurt him, I just…I don’t know. I was so mad, not just at him but at everything…I feel bad that he had to go to the hospital.”

I walked over and put my arms around him, and to my surprise, he hugged me back. “I know you didn’t mean to hurt him. And I’m proud of you for sticking up for what was right. That’s really brave. Not a lot of kids your age, or even guys my age, would do that. Your mom and dad would be really proud of you.”

He squeezed me tighter, then stepped back and wiped his eyes. I could see that he didn’t want me to notice that he’d gotten emotional. I was so relieved to see him actually cry, but I didn’t want to make a big deal about it.

“Do you want oatmeal? Eggs and toast?”

“I’m gonna have a protein bar.” He shook his head and pulled the strap of his backpack up his shoulder. “Wyatt has them in his truck. I’m just going to eat one on the way to school.”

At the mention of Wyatt’s name, I felt my cheeks flush, which was ridiculous. We weren’t in the fifth grade like Mikey. I tried to shake off my body’s reaction. I also made a mental note to find out what the bars were that he had. Getting the kid to eat had been a nightmare.

“Did you brush your teeth?”

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