Page 91 of Snap Shot

After ditching the pencil skirt and blouse from work for an oversized black tee and plain jeans, I pick through my fridge for possible dinner options. It's scant and I'm not a great cook. I've been known to burn a boiling pot of water. I thumb through the pantry. A family pack of my emergency Maggi stares back. Guess we’re ordering in.

Fifteen minutes later—five minutes before seven—I trot over to answer the soft knocks on the door. Landon barrels in, closes the door behind him and grabs me. One arm wraps around my waist as his other hand trails up the back of my neck, threading through my loose hair. He hums out a sigh, lowering his head into the corner of my jaw and planting a tender kiss there. Even softer is what he whispers. “God,I missed you.”

My hands land on his warm, firm chest, pulling him close by the sweatshirt material before traveling up to circle his shoulders. What was it we were supposed to talk about?Something pokes me in the belly. And not in the hot, fun way.

“Ouch! What is that?”

“Fuck, sorry.” Landon pulls away and sticks his hands into either side of the kangaroo pocket. Two baby cacti in mini clay pots stand upright in his palms. “They reminded me of you.”

“What?” I let out a confused laugh. “Sorry, that was rude. Thank you. But also, what?”

“Yeah.” He sets them down on my dining table and returns to me. “You can't seem to keep plants alive. Maybe these will get a chance. You have a lot in common” —his hips pin me against the edge of the kitchen island— “they're prickly on the outside” —his lips caress the shell of my ear— “and wet on the inside.”

I lay a sharp, but playful smack to his chest, unable to withhold an obnoxious smile. The blow is ineffective, and Landon continues the onslaught.

“What do you say, Indi?” His mouth sucks the skin stretching across my collarbone. “I came here to eat. So let me eat.”

Chapter 25: You’ve Replaced Twinkies

Landon

Indi's teeth nip at one corner of her plump lower lip. Soulful, unsure brown eyes framed by the lushest, darkest lashes I've ever seen plead at me. “About that, can we talk?”

Fuck. I knew it. Something's wrong.I felt that pit of my stomach grow when she said she didn't want to see me for a few days. A few days? The only thing getting me through today was knowing I'd get to see her. I wouldn't last a few days.

I loosen my hold on her, begrudgingly giving her the space she wants. “Did I do something?”

“No, I don't know,” she says through a sigh, shrugging and crossing her arms. “I need time to think.”

My chest thuds with a quickening beat, fear planting a seed in its core. “You don't wanna do this anymore?”

“I didn’t mean—” Indi shakes her head, screwing her eyes shut. “I need a second to figure out how to explain. I've never been on the opposite end of this, you know?” She plays with her hands. “I'm still getting used to the fact that you wanna hang out with me at all, much less all the time.”

My fist furls against my thigh, knuckles cracking. How could anyone hurt this delicate soul?

“Well, get used to it. Why wouldn't I? You're freaking great.”

The downturned twist of her mouth shows she doesn't believe me.

Seeing Indi so vulnerable breaks my heart. This side of her is so sweet and innocent, but the Indi confident enough to make me beg? That's the one I want her to be.

“Come here.” I tug her close by the elbows, uncrossing them only to tuck and recross them within my hoodie pocket. My hands clasp together on her lower back, fingers twining.

Her eyes flutter down when I drop a kiss onto her forehead. I tip up her chin with a finger to force her gaze. “I'm enjoying the hell out of getting to know you again. You're fun.”

“Am I?” She lets me peck the tip of her nose.

“Super fun. Are we okay?”

Indi returns a shy nod.

“Good.”

Her shoulders relax with her next breath.

“We gonna stand like this the whole time or you gonna invite me to sit?”

“Let's stand.” With her face hidden against my chest, as good as it feels, I can't gauge her seriousness.

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