Page 74 of Karma's Kiss

I lean up and kiss him on the cheek, but then before I can pull away, he turns and kisses me properly, sweet and exploring. I feel it like a butterfly taking flight inside me.

“Come home with me?”

I smile against his lips. “I have to finish up. I’m technically on the clock.”

There’s a sudden commotion around the corner and I know Amber and Michael are likely about to make their exit. I’ve stayed out here longer than I should have. Hopefully my absence hasn’t been noticed.

I kiss Sawyer once more quickly then try to hurry away, but he catches my hand and reels me back in.

“I’ll wait for you,” he promises, and then before I can protest, he gently pushes me back in the direction I was trying to go. I turn the corner with a dopey smile on my face, which Queenie notices right away.

“Take it you found Sawyer?” She taps her bottom lip. “Your lipstick’s a bit smeared right here.”

Embarrassed, I swipe it away. “Better?”

“Loads. Now let’s send off this bride and groom in style and call it a night.” She winces as she looks down at her feet. “These dogs are barkin’.”

True to his word, Sawyer waits for me so he can take me home with him after the wedding’s wrapped up. I should have realized he lives a block away from David and Lindsey. One big happy cul-de-sac. Sawyer’s house is a new build, one-story ranch-style with pale blue shutters and potted flowers near the front door. There’s an entryway rug and furniture that coordinates. Standing in the foyer, I look at him with a healthy dose of skepticism.

“Did an ex-girlfriend help you with all this?”

There is no way he knew to coordinate those gingham drapes with those throw pillows.

He laughs. “When I bought the house, my mom and Lolly took my credit card and went to town. I couldn’t tell you where any of this came from. Crate and Pottery? West Elm Barn?”

“Close. You almost named a real store. Well tell them thanks the next time you see them. I like what they did with the place.”

He motions toward the central hallway. “Can I get you water before we continue our tour?”

“Wow. Sure. I’ll take a water. Going to ask me if I’dprefer ‘still or sparkling’?”

He unfurls a cheeky grin. “I’ve got both.”

I look impressed. “A full-fledged adult.”

“Not bad, huh?”

“We’ll see if your sheets are clean. That’ll be the true test.”

His eyebrows hike up. “Oh you think this tour’s going to culminate with a look at my bedroom?”

I blanch—annoyed at myself for assuming we were here for the sole purpose of getting it on—but then the look on his face turns to one of pure glee. He’s reveling in this moment, me with nothing to say for myself. Of course I want to see Sawyer’s bedroom! I want to see Sawyer’s naked bodystat!

“No offense, but I didn’t come to your house late at night to ogle your Pottery Barn sectional.”

He chuckles, leans in, and gives me a peck. “But what about that recliner? Nice, right?”

When I make like I’m going to walk right back through the front door—sayonaraforever—Sawyer takes my hand firmly in his grasp and tugs me deeper into the house. He gets me that water he promised and offers me a snack, which I decline because I’m still full from my firstand secondpiece of stolen wedding cake.

The tour continues and I’m allowed a decent look around the kitchen and a full perusal of the mudroom off the driveway, but then while I’m running my hand over the cute blue and white wallpaper in his half-bath, I catch Sawyer studying me intently, an obvious longing in his eyes before he smiles, nodding to another room. From that moment on (whether I’m just imagining it or not), it seems like Sawyer starts to speed things along. I’m barely spared a glimpse at the office and then he taps on a closed door down the hall. “That’s a bedroom, but I have it set up as a gym for now.”

I turn back to look at him over my shoulder as he prods me along. “Don’t I get to see it?”

“My weight set? I’ll show you first thing in the morning. Let you test it out and everything. How’s that?”

“Now, now, I want thefulltour. If you’re hiding a room filled with junk—”

He flings the door open, proving it’s a neat home gym, just like he promised. Then he wraps his arm around my waist and scoops me toward the primary bedroom.

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