Page 125 of Hope & Harmony

“I needed a break from…life, I guess. A career change. A chance to experience something new and different. Like a, what’s it called…a gap year? I never had the chance to backpack around Europe, so this is my substitute.”

“That sounds good. I never took a gap year, either, but I always thought it sounded fun. One of my friends went backpacking across Southeast Asia and then on to Australia and New Zealand. To tell you the truth, I was a bit jealous, seeing all his updates. The furthest I’ve managed so far is Greece.” Lifting my pint to my lips, I swallowed a mouthful of cool cider. So good. I was the band’s drummer, not a singer, but I always ended up singing along with the setlist, and a chilled cider was the perfect way to soothe my throat after a gig.

“You’ve never been to the US?” Jaxon turned his head, and our eyes met, and the intensity of his gaze made my breath catch in my throat. Fuck. He really was so hot.

Holding his gaze, I placed my pint glass down. “Not yet. But maybe I could take you sightseeing here, and then you could return the favor one day. Or repay me in another way.”

His eyes widened, and then, after a long moment where I held my breath, he smirked at me. That smirk did things to me. Things that weren’t appropriate in a public place, but fuck it, you only lived once. Before he could respond, I leaned forward, sliding my lips across his, and kissed the smirk right off his face. He gasped, but then his hand came up to curl around the nape of my neck, and he opened his mouth to me.

That first slide of his tongue against mine was electric. I reached out, gently cupping his stubbled jaw as we kissed, slow and deep and so fucking good. I never wanted it to end.

When we drew apart, he stared at me, his mouth open. “Wow,” he said eventually, breathless, dragging a hand through his hair. “Yeah. Wow.” Picking up his pint, he downed a third of it in one go, and I noticed his hand was shaking. For my part, I was feeling just as shaky as he was. That had been anincrediblekiss.It felt like we’d connected in that moment, on a level I’d never experienced before. We didn’t even know each other, and I was reeling.

Picking up my glass again to give me something to do while I gathered myself, I cleared my throat. “I’m glad I didn’t misread the signs.”

“No, you didn’t.” A disbelieving laugh fell from his throat. “I can’t believe that happened.”

“Me neither.” I wanted to kiss him again, badly, but he still seemed a bit shaken up, and I didn’t want to push him for anything. Instead, I leaned back in my seat. “You said you needed a career change. What were you doing before? I’m still not sure what I want to do after I finish my degree. The dream would be to be the full-time drummer for the 2Bit Princes and tomake enough money from it to live on, but the chances of that happening are probably one in a million, or something.”

Thanks to our close proximity, I felt the exact moment his entire body stiffened, right when I mentioned his career change. Fuck.

“Sorry. You don’t have to talk about it.”

He took a deep breath, and then his hand landed on my arm. “I like your tattoos,” he murmured, his cheeks flushing as he adjusted his tentative grip, his fingers lightly stroking over my skin. “Uh…yeah. I’m not ready to talk about that. Not yet. Sorry.”

I placed my hand over his, and he stilled, his gaze flying to mine. “You don’t have to apologize. I just want to get to know you, but you don’t owe me anything, okay?”

“You’re incredible. So different from anyone I’ve ever met.” His voice came out as a whisper. “I think…I think I’d like to kiss you again.”

“Yeah?” Leaning in, I smiled. “I’m not going to stop you.”

We alternated between talking and kissing, our drinks forgotten, as I told him about my experience as a uni student, and he shared little crumbs of information about himself—things like his favorite colour, his star sign, a place in New York that did the best pizza he’d ever had in his life, the tourist spots he’d already visited in London. When I pulled my phone from my pocket to check the time, I was shocked to find it was almost three in the morning.

“Bloody hell. How is that the time?”

Jaxon glanced down at my screen and laughed. “I guess we were enjoying each other’s company so much, we lost track of time.” His laughter died away, and he licked his lips, his eyes darkening as we stared at one another. “Want to continue this back at my place?”

I knew exactly why he was inviting me back to his, and it wasn’t to continue our conversation.

Instead of replying, I stood and tugged him to his feet. He laughed as I dragged him out of the bar and down the street.

“Hey, wait up. We’re going in the wrong direction. I think.”

I stopped, turning to see him grinning at me, his eyes sparkling in the glow from the street lamps. Fucking gorgeous. Pressing him up against the wall we were standing against, I dipped my head to his ear. “Sorry. Why don’t you show me the way?”

His body shivered against mine, and I heard his breath hitch. “I think I need you to show me the way.”

Drawing back, I stared at him, incredulous. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

The corners of his lips curved into a wry smile. “I’m saying I’m not all that experienced when it comes to…uh, men, and you seem…like you know what you’re doing.”

Fuck. I lowered my head again, kissing up the side of his throat as he pulled me closer. “I’m gonna take such good care of you.”

“Yeah,” he whispered, grinding against me. It was so fucking hot, and I was rapidly losing the ability to think.

In between kissing and getting my hands all over him, I managed to say, “No pressure, either. Whatever you want.”

“Curtis. Fuck. I want you.”

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