Page 47 of It's Complicated

Surprised?

From Lori:

Actually, no

I don’t suppose Nancy Powell would’ve super-glued your gas cap when you broke up with her in junior year if you were a lousy kisser

To Lori:

Tonight wasn’t the first time we kissed, though

From Lori:

No, you’re right

But tonight was real

At least for me

I stare at the words not sure if I can let myself believe them. But I’m tired of fighting this. Of always having an ironclad self-control and constantly keeping myself in check. I can’t do it anymore. Not when she asks me to kiss her. Not when she tells me it’s real.

My thumbs fly over the keyboard.

To Lori:

Are you still in the cab?

Tell the driver to turn back

From Lori:

Already ahead of you, Barlow

To Lori:

Where are you?

From Lori:

Riding up in your super slow elevator *eye-rolling emoji*

My heart hammers in my chest. I cross my apartment at record speed and get to the door just as a knock comes from the other side.

I fling the door open. “What are you doing here?”

“You wouldn’t let me talk earlier. And you might’ve had a point because it’s freezing outside.” Lori pushes her way into the apartment past me, losing items of clothing as she goes. “I half froze just getting out of the cab and into your lobby.”

I follow her, picking up her coat, scarf, and gloves from the surfaces she’s tossed them on. But when I get to the couch, she stares at the pile of clothes in my hands and takes it from me. “This is not the time to worry about the proper place where to put outerwear, Jace.” Lori grabs her things and drops them in a heap on the living room armchair.

“Why are you here, again?”

Lori takes a step closer and rests a hand on my chest. “Because I really liked the way you kissed me tonight, and I’d like you to do it again?” The affirmation comes off as more of a question.

I swallow and when her hand slides up over my shoulder and into my hair, I grab her waist and pull her to me. The moment is tender and intense, not frantic like before. I ride my palms up her back and let my fingers slide into her soft hair, freeing it from the ponytail she still has it in. Then I cup the back of her head, keeping my other hand to the small of her back. We stare at each other for a few long instants before I close my eyes andpress my lips to hers in a gentle brush, then another. I take my time, teasing her to insanity, just as she’s done with me for years.

When I finally deepen the kiss, drawing a moan from her throat, she buries her fingers in my T-shirt, trying to pull me closer even if it’s physically impossible. Our bodies are already molded to each other. At the edge of my mind, an annoying bug is still buzzing around, screaming that this is a mistake. But I can’t fight this, not anymore. I simply don’t have the strength. Lori is all I want. She’s all I’ve ever wanted. I need her. I’m drowning and she’s my life raft. I could do this all night, kiss her deep and slow, and never tire of it.

Her hands keep tugging at my T-shirt, and it’s not helping to cool me down. I reach lower, plant my hands behind her thighs, and scoop her up, laying her down on the couch and sliding beside her, careful not to crush her.

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