Page 29 of Fun Together
She looks over to where I’ve pointed and chews on her bottom lip. I watch her think for a few seconds and then she nods decisively. “Okay.”
I grab her hand and lead her over to the corner. Her palm is warm, a little sweaty, and I wonder if she’s nervous. I move so that she’s wedged in the small space. From an outside perspective it would just look like a couple making out. “How’s this?”
She crosses, then uncrosses her arms, like she’s unsure what to do with them. “What should we do now?” She laughs the tiniest bit in a nervous way. “Does it look like you’re just some creep trapping me in the corner?”
The last thing I want is her to feel uncomfortable or that I’m hovering over her in a creepy way. “Sorry, I don’t want you to feel like that.” I straighten a little so I’m not as close to her.
“No, I’m okay. I’m glad it’s you—I mean that you’re here. That I don’t have to—” She takes a shuddering breath. “Ineedto do this. Even if it isn’t real.”
“If you want something to do with your hands, you could put them on the back of my neck? Like you’re going to pull me in.”
She nods. “Right, yeah that’s a good idea.”
“Then I can move my face down next to yours and it’ll look like we’re kissing from her point of view.” I’m hoping if I spell everything out then she’ll feel more comfortable.
“But you won’t actually kiss me?” She says this in a way that I can’t read. I can’t tell if she’s ensuring I won’t or if she’s hoping I will.
“No. We won’t actually kiss.”
She brings her hands up to the back of my neck and rests them against my nape before sliding her fingers into my hair. It feels so good, a pleasant shiver rolls down my spine.
“You could put your hands somewhere on me,” she suggests.
I was so busy focusing on where she’d need to put her hands to make this convincing that I didn’t allow myself to think about getting to touch her. Back when we were playing pool and I stood behind her and placed my hand over hers, it felt so right, so good to be near her like that. “Where?” I ask, voice cracking.
Her hands twitch in my hair. “On my waist?”
I rest my hands along the waistband of her jeans. The bottom of her tank top lifts and I can feel her skin, soft and warm against my hands. This is a terrible idea. An excellent, terrible idea.
“This okay?” I ask.
“Mm-hmm.”
“Sorry if I’m a little scruffy,” I say, bringing my face down by her right cheek. “Haven’t shaved in a while.”
“It’s okay. I like it. I mean—” She shifts slightly, and I slide my hands around to clasp my palms against her lower back. “It suits you. The beard.”
I’ll never go clean-shaven again. “Thank you.” I move my head to the other side, mimicking the act of kissing by her left ear. “You still good?”
“Yeah,” she says, sounding a little breathless.
“Why do you have to kiss someone before you can leave?”
“It’s part of my hierarchy of fun.”
“That sounds very serious.”
She huffs a laugh and the way her breath feels against my neck makes me feel like I’ve reverted to being a teenager again, when the slightest touch from a girl would send me into a horny tailspin. “It’s something Rett and I put together as a guide.”
“And kissing is part of that?”
“Among other things,” she says, and I glance over to see a flush of peach move up her neck into her jawline. I’m curious about these other things, too, but push that aside for now.
“Kissing is fun,” I say, unable to keep myself from looking at her mouth.
“Yeah, it can be.”
“So why aren’t you really flirting with someone tonight?” I move back down to nuzzle by her neck. “Really kissing them?”
