Page 59 of The Proximity Factor

“That sounds awful.”

He shrugged. “I got used to it. Video games and books became my friends. Then I met Stephen,” he muttered. “He was my lifeline, and I was his.”

I threw my arms around Parker, feeling the weight of his words. It was no wonder he didn’t easily let people in. I would be patient. “I’m sorry the people who should have loved you the most hurt you so much.”

Parker carefully wrapped his arms around me, still holding on to his unopened can of soda. “You have nothing to apologize for. Unfortunately, that’s life. The ones you love the most have the most power to hurt you.”

I nodded against him, knowing we were inevitably bound to hurt each other, no matter how careful we were. It was the nature of relationships. Especially when PMS was involved. But this I knew: “I will do my best to never intentionally hurt you. Unless you leave the toilet seat up again. Then I make no promises.”

“Fair enough.” He chuckled before getting serious. “I’ll also do my best not to intentionally hurt you.”

I gave him a good squeeze. “That’s good news because after we do our video diaries, you owe me a Gilmore Girls episode.”

He groaned.

“Come on. I know you’re dying to see Luke and Lorelai’s first kiss. I mean, it’s nowhere near as good as ours, but it’s pretty good.” Nothing would ever compare to that simple first kiss that rocked my world.

“How about we just kiss instead?” Parker countered.

“Oh, that’s definitely happening.” I lifted my head until we were face-to-face and I could feel his breath whisper across my skin. Each of his breaths seemed to hold the beautiful secrets he was waiting to share with me. Someday, I would know them.

He leaned in, expecting to be kissed.

I licked my lips, wanting to feel his mouth move over mine. “But ... only after you watch Gilmore Girls with me. I promise to make it worth your while.”

His lips curled before stealing a quick kiss. “You win.”

“Believe me, we’ll both be winners.”

His mouth fell open. “Damn,” he coughed out. “I’ll hurry.”

“Me too.” I turned to leave, but before I could, he caught hold of my arm. With a swift movement, he pulled me back, our bodies colliding. The sound of our breaths filled the air, mixed with that of my beating heart. His lips met mine, and a rush of urgency surged through us, igniting an unquenchable fire that refused to be ignored.

Parker dropped his soda, which made a loud clanking noise as it rolled across the floor. His newly free hand caressed the curves of my body.

When his lips had done a thorough job of decimating my own, he kissed his way over to my ear, where he nuzzled it until I shivered so violently it made me want to melt into the floor. I had to hold myself upright by gripping his shirt.

“You undo me, Lanie,” he whispered before abruptly pulling away.

“The feeling is mutual,” I could barely say for breathing so hard.

He offered me a tick of a smile. “I’ll meet you in the living room in twenty.”

All I could do was nod. Holy Hannah, that was something. If a kiss translated into feelings, he was so into me.

I stumbled back to my room, drunk off Parker’s kiss. The Dungeon Master was one heck of a kisser. Yowzers.

I hurried to get my laptop so I could rush back to Parker. Forget Luke and Lorelai. They had nothing on us. I didn’t even bother sitting on my bed—too much pent-up energy. I set the laptop on my bed, logged in, downloaded the questionnaire, and basically bounced on the balls of my feet while staring into the camera.

“Question one: What is the status of your relationship with Parker? Did you think we would break up already? Um, we’re still dating.”

“Question two: What attracted you most to Parker?” I wasn’t sure if I could choose just one thing. And it wasn’t something he showed me at first. It was more the feeling I got around him and from digging into his past. “There’s just this goodness about him, like when you’re around him, you know everything will be okay. Is that weird?” Not that I cared what these nosy researchers thought.

It was so weird that they were so interested in my “love” life.

“Question three: What is the current mood in the house?” Uh, judging by the kiss we just shared in the kitchen, I was going with, “It’s like a Tim McGraw and Faith Hill duet. I’ll let you decide which one I’m talking about.” I wickedly smiled.

“Question four: Have you discussed your future goals with Parker? If yes, are your goals in alignment with his? Yes, and I think so. We are trying to take things slow. Although, I was kind of hoping he would offer me a job with his company.” I covered my mouth, wishing I hadn’t said that out loud. But now that I’d let it slip, I felt like I needed to explain the situation. “I totally understand why he doesn’t think it’s a good idea to work together. But ... and I have told no one this ... going back to work this week at the school just didn’t feel the same to me. Don’t get me wrong—I love my students and the girls on the cheer squad. I even love most of my fellow teachers, except for Mrs. Truman, who believes cheerleading is a waste of time and resources. But other than that, I have no complaints. I just want something more. And it scares me. What if I’m not meant for more? Could I actually live outside of Goldenville?”

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