Page 25 of Wish You Were Mine
“Because I have so many.” Alessi rolled her eyes but seemed to smile despite herself.
“You’ve always been a mystery to me,” Miles said.
And Ky must’ve heard us decide to keep playing because just before opening the back door to head inside, he called out, “Never have I ever wanted to kiss someone currently in the hot tub.”
“Well, no pressure with that one, guys.” Owen chuckled awkwardly as Ky disappeared inside, conveniently avoiding the truth bomb he’d just dropped on all of us.
I watched as everyone looked around at the group in the hot tub. And then, one by one, we all took a sip of our drinks.
Interesting.
Dare I hope the person Owen was interested in kissing was me?
“So, I’m guessing you either broke up with that guy at the bar, or he wasn’t your boyfriend to begin with?” Owen’s voice dropped low against my ear after he set his cup back on the hot tub’s ledge.
I gulped, a chill racing down my neck and spine from the sudden nearness of him. “We broke up last spring.”
“Good to know.” Owen’s voice was steady, but when his shoulder brushed against mine in the water, my stomach swirled with a delicious heat that spread throughout my entire body.
And just that one touch made me hungry for more. I’d been careful so far not to let any part of me cross the invisible barrier between us, but maybe I shouldn’t be so cautious? Maybe a few more brushes against his skin wouldn’t be so bad.
I certainly wouldn’t mind some physical touch from such a beautiful man, especially after so many months of barely any of it.
We did two more rounds of “Never Have I Ever," but with every passing second, as snow gently started falling all aroundus, something seemed to shift in the air—an electricity that made everything feel more charged.
“It’s almost time, guys!” Miles said after glancing at his phone that he’d left along the edge of the hot tub. “Eleven fifty-nine p.m.”
He quickly pulled the countdown clock up on his screen, setting it where we could all see it.
The seconds started ticking by, and with each second that got us closer to midnight, my heart seemed to race a little faster.
I shifted, trying to make myself comfortable, but my mind was racing. I had no idea what these guys usually did at their New Year’s parties, but I was pretty sure it was customary to kiss someone at midnight, right?
And with everyone here being open to kissingsomeonein the hot tub, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to make that happen…
You know…as long as the person each of us was interested in kissing matched up with who they wanted to kiss, too.
I glanced over at Owen, watching him closely for a moment. His eyes were focused on the countdown clock, but there was something about the way he held himself, like he was feeling the same tension I was. Was he thinking about kissing someone? And could that someone possibly be me?
As the seconds ticked down, anticipation buzzed in my veins, my breathing becoming more shallow, as if the air was getting thicker.
I glanced at Owen again, and this time, when I did, his gaze flicked to mine, his eyes holding a question. That simple look only made my anticipation grow.What’s going to happen next?
I bit down on my bottom lip, almost able to feel what those pouty lips of his would feel like if they grazed against mine. I’d never kissed a guy with lips like his before. They looked so soft,so inviting, and I was sure they could do all kinds of marvelous things to me.
His jaw was slightly clenched, his body still, but there was something in the way he watched the countdown that told me he was just as uncertain as I was.
Time kept moving, however, and before I knew it, the countdown was almost over.
“Ten…nine…eight…” Miles’s voice broke into my thoughts, pulling me back to the moment. My heart pounded in my chest, and each second seemed to make the knots in my stomach tighten more.
“Seven…six…five…” I could feel my pulse racing with every number. “Four…three…two…one…”
And then, as we all shouted, “Happy New Year!” in unison, it felt like the world held its breath.
Bash was the first to kiss Alessi, followed quickly by Miles who turned to kiss Nora.
“Should we...?” Owen’s quiet voice sounded close to me. He nodded toward the others, indicating that he was asking if I wanted to follow suit.
