Page 14 of Mine with Extra Lime

“What did you expect? You’re an absolute goddess, E. How could I keep my hands to myself?”

I put my hands to his chest and look up at him. “Mr. Alexander”—a familiar rumble comes from his chest—“you are such a flirt! Are you ready to go?” I know the risks, flirting like this. I’ve slipped back into the Emma I was 16 years ago. I’m being reckless and should tone it down, before one of us takes things too far.

He shakes his head with a little chuckle. “No, Emma, I am not ready to let you go.”

I am at a loss for words, but I need to keep it light. I reply, smiling, “Ok, but the stadium is emptying out, we can’t stay here forever.” I open my bag and gesture for him to put the waters in.

When I think he is about to release me, he leans in, softly kissing my cheek then pressing his own cheek to mine. I feel his hot breath on my ear and my breath hitches. “No, but if I had my way, I’d keep you forever.” He pulls back, looking for the green light to kiss me. Instead of leaving him hanging, I lift my chin and press a chaste kiss to his lips and pull away just as quickly. I don’t trust myself right now, and if we don’t get out of here soon, I am afraid I will climb him like a tree and be banned from ever attending a baseball game again. I attempt to retreat from him so we can leave, but he holds me in place. Leaning down to press his forehead to mine, he whispers, “I am so sorry I ever let you go, Emma.” He pulls back with almost sad eyes. I miss the sudden loss of warmth when he steps back and offers me his hand. “Shall we?”

I blow out a breath that comes out more like a sigh. “Yeah, I need to get home…early morning meetings.” All traces of his normally consistent smile have faded. I take his hand and we head back to his car. The mood has shifted. I know I overthink everything, but the change in energy between us is no longer playful and light.

The car ride home is nearly silent, with only the music playing on the radio to fill the void. It’s only twenty minutes to my house, but feels like eternity. When we arrive, he turns off the car engine, steps out of the car, and circles it to open my door. I know the routine—he never let me open doors back then, I doubt he would let me now. I step out and we walk to my front door. With my head down, fiddling with my keys, I don’t know what we are doing but I am not liking the shift between us since we left the game. “Thank you for tonight, I had an amazing time.” I lift my gaze a little and there is such a swirl of emotion in his eyes—a little lust, a dash of sadness, and a whole lot of disappointment. He lifts my chin a little higher. I can’t look away even if the searing eye contact transports me back 16 years, making me feel like I am 21 all over again.

He pauses for a moment and asks with so much worry in his voice, “Did I…did I mess everything up? Moving too fast tonight? Because I need to be honest, Emma, I have never stopped loving you. I need to know if I have a shot at making you mine again.” As I am about to respond, he lifts his hand, tucks a few strands of my hair behind my ear, and instead of pulling away wraps his fingers around the back of my neck to pull me a few inches closer. His eyes darting between mine, as if to askis this ok?I give in, leaning a little closer, so he can make the final move. I unconsciously bite my lower lip, my body giving him the answer he was hoping for without words. He wraps his other arm around my lower back to pull me close and brings his lips to mine. This isn’t the Dylan I knew when we were younger—he is kissing me like I might disappear if he stops.

As his hand wanders from the back of my neck to the front of my throat, as he continues to claim my mouth. It feels too familiar, him owning my body like this.It's too much.I pull my lips away from him, wrap both of my arms around his back, and press my forehead against his chiseled pecs.When did he get so ripped?“I’m sorry. As much as I want you to come in, I can’t do this…it’s just too soon.”

He holds me tighter, his chin resting on me. He kisses the top of my head and whispers into my hair, “Don’t apologize, it’s ok, E. I didn’t expect to come in. I’m sorry if I took things too far. Honestly, I would wait a thousand years if it meant I could hold you in my arms like this again.”

Tears are prickling behind my eyes. All of my fears that I suppressed tonight come to the surface. “You can’t say things like that, not after...” I can’t say it out loud. The hurt from 16 years ago slams back into me. I was so in love with him and never really loved anyone after him. Not like that. He broke me and it took so long to pick up the pieces. While it feels almost like the last few hours erasedsomeof the last decade or two, it’s just too fast. “You know it’s hard to say no to you, especially when you kiss me like that.” Taking a deep breath before I continue, “You have been very clear about your intentions, and I’m…I’m just not ready to fall in love with you again. I know that isexactlywhat would happen if we don’t slow down.”

His eyes full of hope, he smiles as he kisses my temple. “Would that be so bad? Falling in love with me, again? I know I messed things up when we were younger. But we are different people now. Just one day with you and I know that whatever this is, it’s imminent. I know we always move fast, but I promise if you give us a shot, I'll never hurt you again.”

I softly say the only logical thing that comes to mind, “You can’t promise me that.” I shake my head, attempting to break the eye contact he demands.

He pulls me in closer, leans his head down, and says quietly next to my ear, “Yes, I absolutely can. This, you and me, we were always meant to be together. All I am asking for is a chance to prove it to you. One chance. Sure, I would be lying if I said I haven’t thought about you naked in my bed, but it’s bigger than that. It’s like a piece of my heart was missing and just being with you right now, it feels whole again.” He pulls away, takes my hand, bringing my palm to his lips for a soft kiss. “Please…we can take this as slow as you want.”

Moving a stray lock of hair away from his forehead, he closes his eyes, and leans into my touch. Against my better judgment, I give him the answer he seeks, “Ok…slow.” My favorite dimples appear and I can’t help but smile back at him.

I step back as he bends down to pick up my keys. I was so distracted, they fell out of my hands at some point. I unlock the door, step inside, and turn back to say goodnight before closing it. I lean my back against the door, about to pull out my phone to call Riley, when I hear a soft knock behind me.

Knowing it’s him, I open without checking the peephole. He’s hunched forward with one hand on each side of the door frame, head tilted down. As I open it further, he looks up with a pleading look. “Can I stay the night?”

I quirk an eyebrow at him and cross my arms over my chest. “Really?What happened to taking things slow?”

He bites his lip and chuckles softly. “The girls are with my parents tonight. I’m afraid that if I leave you right now, you will second guess all of this, and I won’t see you again for another 15 years.” Seeing that I am not convinced, he continues, “I’ll be on my best behavior—perfect gentleman—I promise. I’m just not ready to say goodnight…and I don’t think you are either.”

Should I say yes?Probably not. But my lady bits are calling the shots tonight, so I let out a deep breath, and gesture inside with my head anyway. “Come on, I’ll put on the kettle.” All sadness in his expression is gone, replaced with one of lust he is trying to keep contained. I close the door after he walks in, set the door alarm for the night, put my phone in my back pocket, and follow him into the kitchen.What are you doing spending the night with him? This is such a bad idea! So much for slow.I know damn well that he won’t be able to keep his hands off me.

I kick off my heels, my feet are so sore from the long evening. Pulling two mugs out of the cabinet, I place them on the counter in front of me and scan the next cabinet before asking, “Peppermint, green, or chamomile?” He comes up behind me to look at my tea options—I have 23, but he wouldn’t know what half of them are. Looking over my shoulder, he reaches above my head to grab the box of lavender earl grey tea, and sets it on the counter. It’s my favorite, but there’s no way he could know that.

Instead of pulling his hand back, he cages me in on both sides, his chest now against my back and…oh. How is it possible that he’s hard without me even touching him? Part of me wants to unzip his pants, drop to my knees, and take him in my mouth right here, just to hear him call me a good girl again.Whoa, where did that thought come from?I need to lay off the mafia romance books for a while. Having him so close has me throwing all logic out the window.

He whispers, “I’m sorry, you just look so good in these jeans.” He lifts one of his hands, splaying it across my stomach, and pulls me even closer to him. It may have been years, but he still remembers how to disarm me. His lips travel from just beside my ear to my neck, kissing me softly. “Is this ok?”

Trying my hardest to keep my composure, I clear my throat. “You, um, said you would be on your best behavior. Sounds like my pants are the problem. So…I’ll run upstairs and change. Mind starting the water?”

Gently nipping at my earlobe before letting me go, he replies, sounding almost like a purr, “Not at all, beautiful.” All of the air in my lungs is gone, so I do the most sensible thing I can—turn away from him and head toward the stairs as quickly as I can manage.

I take them two at a time and power walk into my bedroom. I pace my room for a moment.What was that? How can he have this kind of effect on me after just a few hours?It felt so good to have him touch me, but I need to stop this right now. I open my dresser to look for the unsexiest pants I have and a comfy shirt. I settle on a pair of white and black buffalo plaid drawstring pajama pants that Lily, Riley, and I wear when we’re doing a romance movie marathon, and a plain black t-shirt. I also grab underwear, since my last pair was trashed after having his mouth and hands on me at the game. I quickly change and make sure to grab my phone from my jeans. After putting my hoodie back on, I head back downstairs, glad I now have as much clothing between us as humanly possible.

As I approach the kitchen, I hear the whistle of the kettle just before he turns the burner off. I bring the prepped mugs over and set them next to the stove.

“Hey, I couldn’t find your sugar, but it looks like I found something even more delicious.”

With one quick motion, he lifts me by my waist, and I let out a little squeak as he sets me on my island opposite the stove. “Dylan, what are you doing? Come on, does that line actually work on anyone?”

We are now almost the same height, which is convenient but problematic if we are trying to take things slow. He steps between my legs.Nope, it’s definitely problematic.“What does it look like I’m doing, E? And you tell me, did it work on you?”

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