Page 48 of The Kiss Countdown

Chapter Sixteen

There will come a day, when I’m in my own bed in my own home, when I’ll wake up to a feeling of peace like I’ve never known. There will be no grogginess, no disorientation, no dread for what lies ahead. Just a slow and soft emergence into consciousness as I greet the morning.

Today, however, is not that day.

I lightly flex my fingers, giving Vincent’s biceps the barest squeeze. As toned as he is, there’s barely any give. Not on his arm, nor on the chest where I rest my head as I cling to him like a favorite stuffed animal. Bonnie the Bunny was my favorite stuffy’s name. She had big floppy ears and a white stain on her belly that stood out against her faded golden fur. I’d accidentally sprayed her with Windex while cleaning one of my old rooms before a big move. Stained or not, she was so soft. Not like Vincent, who’s all hard, lean muscles. Bonnie also wasn’t as warm as Vincent. And with the cold air at my back, it’s no wonder I sought out his warmth again.

My eyes feel heavy when I open them. The room is pitch black, and all I hear is the stillness of the country. Being a city girl, I never would have thought a dark, silent morning would be peaceful, but maybe soft mornings aren’t onlyreserved for your own bed. With no idea what time it is and when the alarm will go off, I shut my eyes.

“Amerie.”

I feel a warm caress against my back and stir. “Hmm?”

“It’s time to get up,” Vincent says. He runs his large palm down my back again, and it feels so good, I arch into him.

When I hear his sharp intake of breath as my knee pushes against the physical evidence that he just woke up, I freeze.

I remove my leg and loosen the hold I have on his side. After I sit up, it takes a good minute to find the courage to meet his gaze, and even then I hold it for only a moment before looking away. “Sorry. I think I just gravitated to the warmest thing I could find overnight.”

Vincent sits up against the headboard. “It’s okay.”

Unlike yesterday morning, his voice doesn’t sound raspy in the slightest, and his eyes are bright and clear. Just how long was he awake, lying under me, before he woke me up? Was he simply being thoughtful and letting me sleep once he realized he was trapped? Or did he enjoy me being pressed to him as much as I did and was loath to stop it?

“You were keeping me warm too,” he adds, and the words are an espresso shot straight to my groin.

I bite down on my bottom lip, and Vincent’s eyes focus on my mouth. His gaze continues to lower, sweeping to my chest, then back to my lips. He swallows before averting his gaze far away from me, and I know it’s time to go back to our normal status quo. The one where we decide all these little heated moments are just that—fleeting and of no consequence. We’re here to play the happy couple in front of Vincent’s family only.

But man, if I had the ability to time travel, I would be anabsolute menace. Back I’d go to the moment before I sat up and Vincent and I remembered that waking up in each other’s arms isn’t part of the deal—and I’d keep going back to that moment over and over again.

Vincent is the first to slide out of bed and head to the restroom. “I’m going to check in at the house, then I’ll be back,” he says when he comes out, hardly daring to look at me.

I shake off the tension and slip into my fleece-lined leggings when he’s gone. I pair them with thick socks, one of those long-sleeve shirts that keeps you warm while wicking moisture, and my jacket.

By the time Vincent returns, I’m sitting on the bed, going through text messages from my parents and Gina. Mom and Dad sent me pictures of their drive through Wyoming. Gina has sent me about a million TikTok videos with requests for an update. I send her a thumbs-up, knowing full well the vagueness will annoy her, but it’s not like I have anything juicy to share.

“My mom made some tacos,” Vincent says. “I’m pretty sure your list didn’t mention anything about not liking chorizo and eggs, right?”

I wasn’t hungry before, but at the wordtacosI sit up straight. “Are you kidding? I love chorizo and eggs. I told you we had a short stint where we lived in San Antonio, right? I don’t remember much from the city, but I do remember the tacos.”

He hands me a foil-wrapped taco before sitting a few feet away on the bed.

“Why do I get the impression that living with your mom was like living full-time on a cruise with an all-you-can-eat buffet?” I ask after my first bite. “If I keep eating like thisall week, my leggings will be the only thing I’ll be able to fit into for a while.”

He frowns. “Would wearing only leggings be a bad thing? It’s not like they look bad on you.”

How can he compliment me so nonchalantly while making my heart race?

When I don’t respond, he looks at me with a slow grin, and I realize he knows exactly what he’s doing. It makes my pulse pound all the more, so I ignore him and direct all my focus on the delicious taco.

“We’re hiking to a cave today,” Vincent says when he’s done eating.

My enthusiasm for eating the taco dies as my stomach begins to feel queasy. “A cave?”

I might have thought twice before agreeing to this trip if I’d known all Vincent’s family members were adrenaline seekers. I still would’ve come, but I would have been at least a little more mentally prepared. And while I may be with a group of experienced experts, it’s a damn cave, where bats and who knows what else make their home.

“Yes, a cave,” he says. “We used to go all the time. It’s not that deep, and it gets a lot of visitors, so the animals stay away.”

“I don’t know, Vincent. Maybe you and your family should go and I’ll sit this one out.”

---