Page 84 of Meet Me at Midnight

I want his lips on mine and our bodies pushed close together. I want to feel his heartbeat in my chest and have him touch the wetness between my legs.

It’s a dangerous urge, one I can tell he’s considering giving in to just as much I am by the swipe of his tongue across his teeth.

I tingle as we move a little closer, the hum of our bodies vibrating nearly audible between us. I smile and he winks again. Temptation taunts us both.

“Hey!” Seth’s voice snaps unexpectedly into the space. I jump, but Beau manages to stay still. I turn around woodenly, hoping all the dirty things in my mind don’t show on my face. “Juniper, I’ve been looking for you. I need you to go down to the graphics department and pick up my prototypes.”

I nod quickly, springing into action. I don’t look back at Beau as I scoot past Seth at the door and hurry down the hall, and I don’t hear what they say after I’m gone. But it’s not because I don’t want to.

Longing to do just that burns at my skin as I force myself away, knowing I have to act as casually as possible in front of everyone in this office. Especially Seth. He’d be the worst person of all to find out what’s going on between us. He’d love more than anything to find controversy where Beau is concerned. Which,considering the mess he and Bethany created a year ago, is the most ironic form of irony possible.

But Seth and his shenanigans aren’t my focus for long.

Beau’s words repeat in my mind.We’ll get through Thanksgiving first, and then we’ll tell the whole family.

Soon, we’re going to tell Avery, and then Neil and Diane. The people who are my found family, and the ones I care more about than almost anything in this world.

We just have to get through Thanksgiving first.

Glitter-festooned stalks of corn crisscross under the sconces at the sides of the Bankses’ arched front door as Avery pulls to a stop in front of her parents’ house. And as I hop out of the passenger’s side door, the gift I found in our building’s mailroom when we were leaving burns a hole from its spot inside my purse.

I want to open it,am damn near desperate to see what’s inside, but I’m also fearful over the hope that’s been blooming in my chest ever since I pulled it out of our mailbox.

It’s officially Thanksgiving, and from the décor that greets us on the outside of the Bankses’ house, I know Diane has ensured this year’s day of thanks is a true celebration.Just like she always does.

Avery runs ahead of me, chattering on the phone to one of her many suitors, and shoves through the front door without knocking. My entrance is much more mindful as I follow her at a walk, closing the door behind us.

The Bankses’ housekeeper Linda waits just inside the door, accepting Avery’s Prada leather jacket and matching handbag as she hands them to her and waits patiently for mine. But I clutch my purse to my hip with a smile.

“That’s okay, Linda. I’m going to hold on to mine.”

“Very well.”

Avery heads straight for the kitchen and I follow dutifully, but after she crosses the threshold to the entrance, a hand shoots out from the hall and yanks me to the side. I almost scream, but Beau covers my mouth and drags me to the first open door.

He shuts it behind us, and I back up against the sink of the half bath, breathing hard.

“Sorry,” he apologizes quickly, his voice a rushed whisper. “I didn’t mean to scare you, but I wanted to kiss you hello.”

My body melts as he presses himself to me, forging our lips in a delicate battle for supremacy. He tastes delicious as usual, and already, he’s got me feeling better.

The holidays always hit hard with absent parents, and my mood hasn’t been the best. But there’s a reason I love the Bankses as a whole, and there’s a reason I’ve loved Beau for as long as I have—they’re the best kind of people and all the family I never had but always wanted.

“Meet you out there,” Beau whispers against my lips, pulling me to him and giving my ass one final squeeze before hurrying out the door. He closes it behind himself, and I take a moment to get myself together, washing the smudged lipstick off my face and fluffing at my hair.

When I’m satisfied my appearance passes for normal, I exit the bathroom and head down to the kitchen.

Diane and Neil stand by the fridge filling cups with their special Thanksgiving punch, and a catering staff works to finalize the touches on the spread of the meal. Beau and Avery are bothsitting on the living room couch with their feet up, bickering about what to put on the TV.

I opt for stopping to see my pseudo-parents first. Neil smiles as soon as he sees me approaching, putting down the pitcher of punch and opening his arms for me to walk inside. I savor the feel of his warm hug, and I imagine, just for a moment, what it must be like to be born with parents like them.

“Happy Thanksgiving, sweetie,” he says, kissing the top of my head right in the center of my hair.

“Happy Thanksgiving,” I reply, squeezing him extra tight before pulling away. Diane is waiting for her turn too, and I scoot into her arms as she wraps them around me. She smells of Gardenia by Chanel, but not the one you can purchase in stores. It’s their Parfum Grand Extrait version, a highly coveted scent I know goes for almost twenty thousand dollars.

My parents got me my first bottle of it when I was five years old, and if I’d known I was going to associate it with the woman who’s been more of a mother to me than anyone else in my life, I probably would have kept it around. At the time, it was just morestuff.

“Dinner should be ready soon, Junebug. Are you hungry?” Diane asks as we pull away from our hug.

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