Page 56 of Fighter
Her shoulders slumped. “Not really.” Her hair, which she'd let fall down, rustled with the movement of a quick shake. “I know you'd never hurt me, but I was concerned for your own sake. You seemed . . . agitated.”
“I feel better now. Thank you.”
Unable to stop myself, I reached over and touched her chin with my hand. Then I lifted it so I could stare into her eyes.
“You okay?”
She drew in a deep breath at my touch, then nodded. My gaze dropped to her lips, then back to her eyes. She put her hand over mine.
“Can I kiss you now?” I asked.
The words came out of me before I could stop them. Even after I heard them, I didn't want to take them back. Only a brief lull came between us before she leaned into my hand and whispered, “Yes.”
In my imaginings, our first kiss would be hungry. A bit wild. A desperate reflection of the way I felt inside. But when I closed the distance between us, I stopped a breath before her lips. The heat of her breath, light with mint, slammed into me like a wall. I stayed there for a moment to soak in the sensation.
Then I gently pressed my lips to hers.
A low heat burned beneath my lips at first, accompanied by a sense of disbelief that I'd allowed myself to get pulled into her so quickly. Then she tilted her head, opening her mouth to me, and all my control vanished.
I gently grabbed her arms to pull her onto my lap. Her hands found my face and threaded through my hair as I pulled her close, banishing all space between us. She made a sound at the back of her throat, and I stopped. When we parted, she stared at me through passion-clouded eyes.
“You okay?” I whispered, panting.
She put both of her hands on my face, seeming unaware of how sweaty I'd become. Then she pressed her forehead to mine.
“Now I am,” she whispered.
And I lost it again.
18
Serafina
The next day, I stared at my phone with a little frown.
Mom:Have you heard from Talmage? I haven't heard anything at all.
Serafina:No. He's been ignoring me. Want me to go check on him?
Mom:Would Ben go with you?
Serafina:Probably.
Mom:Then if it's not too much trouble, it would help me feel better.
Serafina:I'll ask tonight.
When I shoved it back in my pocket, the bells on the Diner door jangled. I stepped back into work with a smile, but it felt forced. I didn't want to be here right now. Normally, I loved waitressing. Today, I just wanted to be back in my loft and under my covers where I could analyze my first kiss with Benjamin in peace. Reminders of my brother certainly didn't help, nor did the perfectly cloudless, warm sky outside.
In the midst of refilling coffees and taking orders around a still-sleepy lunch crowd, Dagny arrived for her midday shift. I almost cried with relief when her bright, expressive face smiled at me.
“H-h-hey!” she cried. “How is the d-day?”
“Slow. Quiet. I'm slowly dying and need you to help me analyze something. You're so good at it.”
A bright gleam claimed her expression as I followed her into the back. “I-I know, I hear it a-a-all the time. But uh oh,” she sang. “D-did someone get a kiss?”
I slumped against the wall with a moan. “Yes!”
