Page 60 of Brewing Up a Bad Boy

He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer.Real.That was what he was trying to get more comfortable with.

They played the rest of the game with his arm around her. It was fun, and though he doubted he’d play other than with this group, he enjoyed it. On the way out of Poppy’s house, Wes talked to him about his father’s brew, which had gone much better after he’d used Alistair’s tips. Soon he and Poppy were alone and cleaning up, and Alistair knew he should leave.

Poppy had switched to lemonade after her entreaty that he not be fake. The slight buzz she had seemed to have left. She was quiet...pensive, really. What was she thinking?

He had no idea, but frankly this wasn’t the first time he’d had no clue what was going on in her head. “What’s up?” he asked.

“You kissed me earlier.”

He waited, but she didn’t say anything else, just leaned against the counter, crossing her long legs and watching him.

“I did. I don’t want to be just friends. I want to keep getting to know you, but this not touching, kissing... It feels odd.”

She tipped her head to the side. The sun had left her cheeks reddish and drawn some freckles on her shoulders. Her hair had loosened from her ponytail due to the heat, strands lying against her neck.

The loose-fitting top she wore pulled taut over her chest as she crossed her arms under breasts. “Yeah, it’s not us to be just friends. But I don’t want to go back to being just lovers.”

“Me either. I want to take this friendship to the next level. I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it,” he admitted. “But not trying feels fake.”

A slight smile teased her lips. “Fake isn’t what we’re going for. I’d rather have something that’s real and true that burns quickly like the summer heat than something fake.”

Seventeen

Possibility was in the air. She told herself that all she wanted was one kiss. That was all she needed for tonight. But that was a lie that her mind didn’t even bother acknowledging.

He’d left his shirt off. That light dusting of hair on his muscled chest was too tempting for her to keep her hands to herself. That she’d resisted even with her Pimm’s buzz was saying a lot for her self-control.

The other bit keeping her contained was that her first whirlwind romance with Alistair had been witnessed by everyone. They’d made the society pages, everyone at school had known, and that had added to the pressure for her to be the girl worthy of being with him.

This time, she wanted Alistair for herself. Wanted to see if, behind closed doors, he was the man for her. She’d already admitted to caring for him. But anything else... That was dangerous. Her heart and soul had already gone all in on him, and no matter how hot he made her feel when she was in his arms, it wouldn’t be worth that cost again.

“So...” he began.

“You’ve never been this...tame before. Why are you now?” she asked him.

“I’m trying. Hell...” He shoved his hands through his hair. “I want to be what you want, and I’m struggling because it’s not me.”

“You think I don’t want you?” she asked, carefully coming closer to him so she felt the heat coming off his body.

“You want me in your bed. What about your life?” he asked.

She had no answer for that and didn’t want to go there tonight. This had been pretty much the perfect summer day. She wanted him to kiss her. To continue the heat that had been simmering between them all afternoon. Since the moment he’d kissed her and told her she was cute.

“Am I still cute?” she asked.

He muttered “fuck” under his breath, cupped her butt and pulled her into his body. “You’re always cute, sexy, frustrating, smart, infuriating and enchanting, moon fairy.”

His mouth came down on hers, and she twined her arms around his neck, holding him as his tongue brushed over hers. He slid his hand under her shirt and up her back. His palm was big and hot against her skin, his fingers spreading out as he lifted her off her feet.

She wrapped her legs around his waist, falling into his embrace fully. This wasn’t the moon weaving her magic around them. This was something else, something different, something that seemed to come from them.

Was there magic here? Or was she seeing what she wanted to see?

Shut up.

Her subconscious urged her on as she sucked Ali’s tongue deeper into her mouth. She felt the edge of her breakfast table under her thighs as he set her down. He undid her bra and shoved her shirt up over her head.

Her bra hung loosely on her arms, and she shrugged out of it. He growled, his hands coming up to cup both of her breasts.

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