Page 32 of The Barista's Beloved

He let go of her and ran his hands through his hair, blowing out a sigh. “I can’t go back. It’s like we let some kind of genie out of its bottle.” His gaze roamed over her. “A really sexy genie.”

She couldn’t help but let loose a small snort of laughter. “A sexy genie? That’s where you’re going with this?”

He waved his hands airily. “I’m not a master of metaphor, Maeve. I’m just a man who really, really wants you. Again and again and again.” His voice dropped to a low murmur at the end of his statement, and he moved in close, pressing her back against the wall of the hallway. He tilted his head forward and rested his forehead against hers. She could feel his breath warm against her lips.

She swallowed. “So what do you want to do?”

“Ruin the friendship,” he muttered.

“We did that pretty thoroughly.” She bit her lip. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to change everything.”

His lips trailed down her cheek and rested lightly against her throat. “I want to take you out.”

She blinked. “What?”

He raised his head, and she almost whined at the loss of his warmth against her skin. “On a date, Maeve.”

She stared blankly at him. “A date?”

He nodded. “A real one.” His lips twisted slightly. “One that starts and ends with the same person, even.”

“I thought you just wanted—”

“Sex?”

She nodded, hating herself for a moment. When had she become this helpless woman who was willing to toss everything out the door for a man—even this man—to get her naked?

“Don’t get me wrong, Maeve. I’m certainly hoping the night heads in that direction.” He offered her a rakish grin and trailed his finger lightly along her waist, making her shiver through the robe. “But I really, really want to spend time with you. Clothed.” He paused. “I mean, mostly.”

“But—”

“We have fun together, right?” She nodded, and he continued. “So isn’t it possible we could have fun together as more than friends? I mean, I’ve never done it before, but I hear it’s possible to have a relationship with somebody you actually like.”

“A relationship?” she squeaked. Something in her brain stuck on the ‘never done it before’ part, but she shook it aside in favor of freaking out about the more immediate prospect.

His arms fell away from her, and he stepped back, looking uncertain. Her heart ached with a physical throb at the expression on his face. “I mean, if you don’t … if you’re not—”

“I am,” she said. “I do. Want to go out with you. It just … seems too good to be true.” She bit her lip.

“Well, that’s flattering.” He grinned at her. “Might want to reserve judgement until you actually go out with me, though.”

She smiled. “I mean, I’ve been out with you plenty, technically.” They’d met up for all sorts of things lately. And she’d always had fun. The idea of going out with him on purpose, romantically, sent anticipatory shivers down her spine. How much more fun could they possibly have?

His jaw dropped. “Wait. Have we been accidentally dating this entire time? Max is going to kill me.”

This time she let out a real laugh, from deep in her belly. “Definitely not. If we have, we wasted a lot of time getting to last night.”

His heartfelt “God, yes,” made her giggle. Then she sobered as he twined his fingers through hers. “So we’re doing this? We’re trying it? Going out on a limb?”

“If your idea of a date is climbing trees we’re going to have a problem,” she said.

“Not that kind of limb, you nerd.” Affection warmed his voice. “And I think I can come up with something you’ll like.”

She raised her eyebrows. “That sounds like a challenge.”

“Nope. A promise.” He wiggled his fingers at her. “Rooooomance.”

“I can’t wait.” She leaned in, relishing the idea that she could just kiss him anytime, no awkwardness or weirdness involved. Dating was way better than friendship. Assuming it worked out, anyway. She chased that thought away as his lips met hers. She’d already ruined their friendship. What was the worst that could happen now?

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