Page 78 of Accidentally Under Your Tree

Had I ever wanted anything this badly? I didn't know whether to curse this bar for being public or thank it. If we were alone, I would have climbed on his lap by now. Where would his hands go if I straddled him? His mouth?

Then he groaned deep in his throat, and his thumb ran along the tender flesh over my pulse, and I cursed this public place. Fuck this bar. Fuck polite society. I wanted to wrap my naked body around his. If I could will my clothes to disappear, they'd be gone.

If I had magical powers, he wouldn't even own clothes.

I snorted, instantly changing the mood.

He went from inviting ease to stiff backed, and still, all firm muscle—impressively firm…

"That wasn't at you," I whispered.

"It's okay." He pulled back, his green eyes searching mine. "Are you okay?"

"Yes!" I practically screamed three inches from his face. "My God, I didn't mean to yell at you."

One corner of his lips curved up.

I probably should have taken as a sign to relax, but the flutters in my stomach were sharp-edged and there were too many of them. "I thought something funny, and I laughed. But it's not like I meant to laugh. I wasn't laughing at you. I just…laughed."

Crinkles deepened at the corners of his eyes. And thank God he was so pretty. He took the words out of my mouth, when clearly nothing else could have made me stop yapping.

"As long as you're good, I'm good." His words rumbled at the back of his throat. They climbed up my spine.

"You're very good."

Oh my God, woman. Could you pretend you've kissed a man before?

I stood too fast. My face was too hot. I'd been lulled into an unusual state of comfort, and this was the inevitable consequence. People didn't generally like me right away. It took months, sometimes years, for me to let people see me. It was a lesson learned either from my natural introverted nature and anxiety, or because of the loss of the friendship I'd had with my twin sister. A loss that had shaken the very core of me. It'd been eight years, and I was still figuring out who I was if I wasn't someone she loved anymore.

But somehow Will had turned the dial down on the noise in my head. The voice saying,"That was a weird thing to do with your hands."Just one faux pas on my part and the voice blasted full volume in my mind.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

"I'm going to go to my room." Then I wondered if that sounded like an invitation, so I added, "Alone."

Eyebrows raised, he blinked.

I couldn't even blame him. He was normal—better than normal. He was like the whisperer of skittish women, or at least, woman. I was the one freaking out.

"Sorry," I whispered. Embarrassingly, my eyes stung.

"You have nothing to apologize for. You don't owe me anything."

"God… please don't be nice."

"I'm not."

I rolled my eyes, and I almost wanted to smile.

"I'm not," he repeated. "I promise."

"Then what are you doing?"

"The bare minimum." He nudged the toe of my boot with his. "It's okay to change your mind."

I pinched my lips together, disappointment a heavy ball in my gut. I hadn't changed my mind. My mind wanted…all of it. Anything Will would give me—a second date, more of that kiss, a tour of his hotel room and naked body.

He tipped back the last of his beer, his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. Setting his empty bottle down, he said, "I have an early day tomorrow. I should head up too."

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