“Yes.” She swallows hard.
“Did you like it?” I ask her.
“Remi,” she admonishes sharply, but I don’t miss the way she shifts her stance. She liked it.
“I want to hear you say it.” I ask again.
She nods and sucks her fat lower lip into her mouth.
I want to suck it, too.
“You know you could have gotten in and watched up close. You could have helped if you wanted.”
I circle her wrists and hold her hands in front of my face.
“They’re a little small, they wouldn’t fit all the way ’round.”
She draws in a big gulp of air and takes a step closer to me.
“Really?” she whispers her eyes flit down to my pants.
“I would have covered your hands with mine. We could have done it together.”
I let go of her wrists and slide my hands up so that we’re palm to palm.
Skin to skin.
It’s not nearly enough.
I’m this close to crossing a line I shouldn’t. But, when it comes to Kal, I can’t seem to help myself.
“Remi… we shouldn’t.” Her voice is husky and her fingers flex a little against mine.
“Yeah, probably not,” I agree, but I see the reflection of my own disappointment flash in her eyes and it emboldens me.
I know I should stand down. Even if it feels like it, we aren’t a good idea.
But she’s so tempting. And when it comes to her, I can’t seem to get a grip on my control.
I link our fingers and bring her hand to my lips for a kiss. She inhales sharply and looks up at me through the inky fringe of her lashes.
Her gaze lingers longingly on my mouth and I smile.
“Oh, Kal. We have a dilemma.” I drawl.
“Really? Then why do you sound amused? A dilemma isn’t generally a good thing.” The corners of her mouth turn up in a small smile.
“It’s a very good thing… because even though you don’t want to be, and I absolutely shouldn’t be, we’re interested in each other.”
“Well, that’s the perfect recipe for an unhappy ending, if I ever heard one.”
But she doesn’t pull away and she doesn’t deny it.
So, I press my advantage.
“I’m more of an optimist than that. Let me take you out on Saturday.”
She pulls her hand away. “I can’t. I have plans on Saturday. And, honestly, I’m just getting settled and there’s your… mom. I think we should stick to just friends. That way, we don’t make things more complicated than they already are. You’re going away to school, right? So… let’s just have a nice summer.” She squeezes my hand like she’s trying not to let me down too hard.