Page 48 of Heartfelt Goals

Dustin leaned in, his lips brushing her throat first, featherlight. His head nudged against her chin, tilting it up, forcing her to expose the delicate curve of her neck. If this was a dream, she never wanted to wake up.

His breath skated over her skin, warm and intoxicating, and when his lips met her throat in a series of slow, teasing kisses, her entire body shuddered.

"I like feeling you against me…" he murmured, the words sending a shiver down her spine. "You are so soft… smell so good…"

Laurel exhaled shakily. "I’m really glad I remembered to put on deodorant."

Dustin stilled—then burst into quiet laughter, his forehead dropping against her shoulder.

"I’m trying to be sexy here…" he chuckled.

"You’re doing a bang-up job," she assured him.

He groaned, still laughing. "You’re making me laugh."

"I like laughter between us."

Something shifted in his expression. His amusement softened into something deeper, something unguarded. "You know what? I think I do too, Laurel…"

His lips traced a slow path along her jawline, the faintest graze of his teeth sending sparks through her veins.

"You smell like peach cobbler."

"My lotion," she admitted, barely able to think.

"I love it."

"Yeah, gonna bathe in it from now on."

His hand slid lower, over the curve of her hip, pulling her even closer.

"You’re killing me…" she whispered, her voice thick with longing.

He chuckled, his breath warm against her skin. "How’s it feel? You’ve been killing me for a few days now."

It felt like fire, like freefalling, like something she could never undo.

"Oh my gosh, can you get with the smooches instead of torturing me?"

His laugh was downright sinful. "I think I like torturing you."

"Two can play that game," she replied, her voice almost hoarse with emotion as she stared into those gleaming eyes, treasuring that smile, and felt him brush his nose against hers, his lips hovering just out of reach.

“This is me, inviting you to a match,” he murmured, his voice a whispered promise, a challenge wrapped in intimacy. His words were velvet-soft yet edged with a quiet determination, igniting something deep inside her. And just like that, the game was on.

“We’re not going backward with this,” he continued, his gaze locked on hers with an intensity that made her breath hitch. “We’re going to figure this out, right?”

Laurel couldn’t speak—not when her heart was pounding so fiercely, not when her entire body hummed with awareness of him. Instead, she nodded, her thick curls bouncing slightly as she gave an emphatic, silent yes. If he had asked for the moon at that moment, she would have found a way to reach for it. If he had asked for her very soul, she might have offered it freely. She was lost in him—utterly, completely, recklessly his.

“You and me…” His voice dipped, coaxing, urging her to step into the unspoken truth that had always existed between them.

“Us…” she whispered, barely able to shape the word around the lump of emotion in her throat.

“A couple…”

“A family…”

“Mine.” The word came out as a low growl, deep and possessive, sending a shiver racing down her spine. And then his lips crashed against hers, and nothing else mattered.

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