Page 76 of The Kiss Countdown

“You... what?” I know he’s been attracted to me, but obsessed? I have a hard time believing that.

“Even though I’m not on my A game, I’ve been afraid that if I give in to distractions, if I allow myself to pick up the phone just once to hear your voice, something will go horribly wrong.”

I can see how much the confession costs him, and I feel myself softening toward him even more. “Vincent,” I say on a sigh, wrapping my hands around the back of his neck to stroke his nape. “I was never trying to be a distraction. I just need to know that I’m not alone in this. But if it’s too much, maybe I should leave?” I say quietly, and hold my breath. I don’t want to play guessing games or emotionally manipulate him, but if he can’t be where I am emotionally, I need to know. Even if it hurts.

His hold on my hips tightens. “No, Mimi. I want to figure out a way to balance both work and home. Because I don’t just want these three months with you. I want forev—”

Before he can finish, before he can lay me bare with a declaration that will make me want to pledge my heart and soul in kind, I bend down and kiss him.

I’m panting when I pull away. “I swear, Vincent, you are driving me crazy. One minute you make me want to throw you to the ends of the universe, and the next I’m melting for you. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do about that.”

“Give me a chance, and you’ll never have to doubt how I feel about you again.” His eyes are soft as he grabs my right hand from behind his neck and places it over his chest. “You feel my heart? Sometimes, when you stand in front of me, it beats so hard that I swear you must be able to hear it.”

I close my eyes and concentrate on the accelerated thumping under my hand. Moved beyond words, I placehis hand on my own chest so he can feel how our heartbeats race in sync. Vincent smiles before pulling my head back to his.

All traces of my earlier hesitation and annoyance have melted away, and I fully give in to the kiss. My body sinks into his as he pulls me in so tight I can’t breathe in without him exhaling.

My nipples tighten, my body aching for his touch, which, even now, proves better than any visit from my rocket and thoughts of him. “I spent too many sleepless nights imagining touching you like this,” he says.

“That explains why you always look so tired.” I giggle when he nips my collarbone and soothes it with a kiss.

He kisses his way from my neck to my ear and back again. “You taste so sweet, I don’t want to stop.”

“Then don’t. Because I don’t want you to.”

He lifts his head, questions in his eyes as he scans my face.

“Make love to me, Vincent.”

He swallows thickly. “Yes.”

I step back and lift my shirt up and over my head. When I reach for the top of my pants, Vincent stops me with his hands on mine. “May I?” he says.

I nod, and like he did at the cabin, he takes care to gently slide my pants down. His large hands glide up my thighs, coming to rest on my ass where he kneads my flesh with his palm. “I’ve been wanting to take these off forever. They’re like my nemesis. Did you know that?”

I blink back the lust-infused haze that seems to have settled over me like a cloud of stardust. “You don’t like my pants?” He wouldn’t be the first, but is this the time to bring it up?

“Make no mistake, I love the way they look. But I can’thelp but feel jealous that a flimsy piece of cloth gets to hug all these curves instead of me.”

“I paid top dollar for these. There’s nothing flimsy about any of my leggings,” I say breathlessly.

Kissing right below my belly button, Vincent slides my underwear down. “I wanted to be the one to get close to your skin. Tasting you.”

My mouth opens on a voiceless moan as he parts my lower lips with his fingers and kisses my core. I grip his shoulders to keep from falling, not that I need to. Vincent’s got me. He’s always got me. His hands hold my hips steady, and I brace my foot on the bed to give him better access. He takes advantage, diving in as his tongue explores. Just absolutely destroying me.

When he stops and stands up, I almost cry from the sudden coldness the absence of his mouth leaves.

“Don’t get all mad,” he says. “We still have a while to go.”

He reaches behind me to unclasp my bra, leaving me bare before him. “You are an absolute masterpiece.”

His finger traces around one of my nipples, then the other, leaving a line of goose bumps. He keeps going, moving over my collarbone where my necklace lies, then to my chin and over my lips.

“Beautiful,” he breathes, outlining the slope of my nose.

At this, I smile. “I like how you see me.” But if we keep going like this, we’ll never get to the good part. I capture his hand. “Now take off your clothes.”

It takes him too long to work through all the buttons on his shirt, but he shrugs the shirt off his broad shoulders.

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