“I can see why,” she whispered.
If you only knew.
Sometimes I wanted to blurt out everything they told me not to. There were moments when I was so sure it nearly spilled out of my every pore. I was tempted to just start talking, spill my guts, and see if anything lit up her eyes with recognition.
I didn’t. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt her more.
“The wood is beautiful,” she murmured, wandering to the house and rubbing her palm along the weathered boards.
“Thanks. Most of it is original, but some of it had to be replaced. I found this old barn about twenty miles from here. They let me salvage some of the wood, so I used that to replace what needed it.”
“You did all this yourself?” she asked, gazing up at me in awe.
I loved that look in her eyes. I wanted to see it more.
“Yeah. I had some help. My dad, some of my buddies.”
“I haven’t met any of your buddies,” she said, scowling.
I caught her around the waist. “Because I want you all to myself.”
The smile in her eyes slowly drained away.
“Kiss me, Am,” I told her.
Her lips pressed together. I saw temptation in her eyes. I waited, still holding her. Slowly, she lifted up on tiptoes, bringing her face close.
My eyes shut, lips tingling with want.
“Eddie,” she whispered, still incredibly close.
I opened my eyes. “Kissing doesn’t require talking.”
She smiled. “I’ve never kissed anyone before. What if I do it wrong?”
I laughed. “Kiss me wrong?”
She nodded sagely.
“Baby, there is no such thing as a wrong kiss from you.”
“You kiss me,” she said.
“No.”
Her eyes widened with shock, and she drew back slightly. “What?”
“You want these lips, come get ‘em,” I said.
A stubborn glint came over her expression and so did desire in the depths of her brown eyes. I smiled, and her lips pressed fully against mine.
My heart jackhammered against my ribs and my fingers quaked with need. I held still, though, forcing myself to let her take the lead. Her lips whispered across mine, pulled back, then did it again.
Her hand lay flat against my chest, palm gliding up to curve around the back of my neck, and she pulled me down.
The second her tongue slipped across mine, all bets were off. With a groan, I wrapped her close and kissed her with reckless abandon.
She moaned when my tongue swept deep and my lips slanted across hers.