Page 24 of Fumbled Into Love

Whatthe fuckwas that?

That kiss was a zap of lightning in my veins and the strongest shot of Everclear. I slide into the passenger seat of my car in a daze.

Kissing someone has never felt like that and that is lethal knowledge.

Nathalie’s grin is wide and mischievous as she revs the engine. My stomach flips and turns.

“Ready to have fun, Adams?”

I take in the wild eyes and full smile and the answer tumbles from me. “I’ve been waiting for a long time.”

CHAPTER 6

“Pinky promise, I won’t let you go”

Pinky Promise – Jaedynn Latter

Nathalie

“This is much better.” I shove my third pork al pastor taco into my mouth, pieces of cilantro and onion dropping onto the picnic table in front of my favorite food truck. “This, Deon,” I gesture at the platter of tacos, rice, and beans, “is a meal, and all for less than the cost of my glass of wine at that other place.”

Deon’s eyes narrow as he takes a bite of his taco.

“What was wrong with my date?”

His tongue darts out to lick his lips, and my body hums. Half an hour ago, those lips were on mine, and holy shit, it was a religiousexperience.

The heat of his hands lingers on my skin, and how his palm fully encompassed my jaw is forever seared into my memory. It’s taken all my self-restraint to still my racing heart and force away the small tremor in my hands.

That morsel of physical attraction I’ve locked away is banging on her cage, begging to be released. She got a taste of him, learned how he kisses—demanding and consuming—and now she thinks that she deserves freedom.

It’s much harder to keep her caged now that I know he kisses like it’s the last thing he will ever do.

“That glass of wine cost fifty dollars.” He gives me a blank stare, so I continue. “The cheapest item was a side salad, and that cost thirty dollars. A few pieces of lettuce is not worththirty dollars.”

“It was upscale and fancy,” Deon’s voice quiets to nothing but a whisper.

“Our dates,” his eyes dart to mine, so I amend my words, “Ourfakedates don’t need to be expensive or fancy. I’m happy to eat tacos on a bench.”

“They’re the only kind I’ve been on,” he admits, and I’m confident my eyeballs pop right out of my skull. Deon surveys the parking lot, playing with his keys.

“You’ve only…what?” I stumble over my words and snatch my agua fresca, taking a moment to rearrange my thoughts. “No wonder you don’t want to date if all of them have been likethat.”

Deon’s contemplative before his head tips back in laughter, the sound deep and throaty and so full of life. His green eyes sparkle with humor.

“That’sone of the reasons.”

“What are the others?” Deon begins to stack hot sauce packets, one on top of another.

“My other what?”

“Your other reasons for why you don’t date.” I spent an hour memorizing his answers to my questionnaire, and he pointedly avoided answering any questions about previous relationships. “You left all the answers blank. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

“Honestly, yeah,” he mumbles, and the defeat in his voice pulls a giggle from my chest. He’s wildly charming when his walls slip, and he shows a bit of who hides behind the cool facade. His subtle cockiness in my office. The dramatic entrance into my room earlier demanding to know about Creepy Terry. I swear I must have imagined the undertone of jealousy in his voice when he asked about Declan, but I teased him for it, nonetheless.

“So..?”

Deon’s head swings around the empty parking lot. The only other person within earshot is the elderly woman who runs the van. She’s far too occupied with her phone to listen to our conversation.

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