Emme
Zane and I were currently in my car on our way to his place. He insisted on driving and since I didn’t much care to drive at all he got no argument from me. Despite his best efforts to distract me, I was still very nervous about what was to come today. To Zane’s credit, he really did attempt to put me at ease all morning.
As I made breakfast earlier in the morning, Zane talked with me about snowboarding and the upcoming events he would be competing in. Apparently, as soon as the new year rolled around he’d be training daily in preparation for the X Games at the end of January. Zane, Stone, and Luke were taking time between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day to recover from previous training sessions and contests and, of course, to spend time with family and friends. They’d hit it hard again after the holiday break.
We finished breakfast, cleaned up the dishes, and then I hopped in the shower. Zane was a gentleman and stayed in the family room watching television while I got ready, which was a huge task. Part of me wanted to call Nikki because I knew she’d help me pick the perfect outfit, but I didn’t want her to get the wrong idea about what was happening. Like Zane said, we were just friends and he didn’t want his friend to be alone on Christmas. My participation in today’s festivities was strictly due to having my hand forced. I refused to add to my guilt. So, I picked out my own outfit. I settled on a pair of black skinny leg jeans, a three-quarter length dolman sleeved, boat neckline emerald green top that was fitted around the waist and hips, but loose across the chest, and a pair of black, knee high stiletto boots. I decided to put some loose curls in my hair and kept it down.
After putting my makeup on and giving myself a once-over I walked out into the family room to find Zane sprawled out on the couch. I would have liked to crawl on the couch with him and stay there all day. I was in the middle of ogling him when I heard, “Emme?”
I snapped out of my daydreaming and saw Zane looking at me with a grin on his face. Yep. He totally caught me checking him out. This was not good for my position on the whole no relationship thing.
“Sorry,” I murmured, looking away from him.
Zane walked over to me, put his finger to my jaw, and turned my head to face him. “No need for an apology, Emme. And, definitely no need for you to be embarrassed. It’s ok to like what you see,” he began. “Can’t say it doesn’t go both ways. You look beautiful, sweetheart.”
I felt my cheeks flush. “Thank you, Zane.”
“Ready?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes, I just want to put together a tray of cookies to take to your parents’ house and I’d like to call my parents quickly before we leave if that’s alright with you.”
“Sure.”
Not much later, we were pulling into a long driveway leading to Zane’s home. From the car, I was already floored by the magnificence of it. Zane had a very large piece of land with no houses immediately surrounding his place. The landscaping was breathtaking and lots of trees covered the view of the home from the driveway. As I looked out the window to one side I saw the beautiful snow-covered mountains and knew that if Zane’s home boasted any windows that would be a view not to be missed. Zane drove through the trees covering the side of the home and his stunning house came into view. Zane parked just outside of the garage. The house on the exterior was timber construction with stone details covering a large majority of the outside of the home. I stared in awe as Zane hopped out of the car and came around to meet me at my door. I stepped out and we walked along the walkway to the double wide front doors. Zane unlocked the door, allowed me to step inside ahead of him, and then disabled the alarm.
I took in the long wide hallway as I stood in the foyer. It had a staircase leading to the second floor off to the left and dark brown hardwood floors throughout. To the right was a room that would probably have been made into a formal living room, but it was mostly empty at this point. Zane took me by the hand and walked me down the hall through the foyer to the enormous kitchen.
“Ok, now I’m jealous. As we drove up here I was in awe at the beautiful landscaping and privacy of the property, but this could make a girl forget all of her problems.”
“The kitchen?” he asked.
“Do you cook?” I retorted.
“Not so much. A few things here and there, essentially enough to not starve, but not really.”
“This is a waste then. This kitchen is like my dream come true. Dark hardwood floors, pristine white cabinets, stainless hardware and appliances, and an island with gorgeous quartz countertops that’s larger than the size of my entire kitchen. I love cooking and baking. You have all this and you don’t really cook? I am so freaking jealous right now.”
Zane started to laugh and I realized it was the first time I had heard him really laugh. His voice could soothe my soul, but his laugh — damn, that could make me fall to my knees. I stopped taking in the space to watch him. He stopped laughing, looked at me, and offered, “Anytime you want to use the kitchen, Emme, it’s all yours. Somebody should get some use out of it. My only requirement is that you share whatever you make.
“You wouldn’t tease a girl, would you?” I asked.
His eyes locked on mine and heated. His voice seemed to drop an octave, if that was even possible, when he promised, “Absolutely.”
Damn. I totally did not need the conversation going there, but with that single word I had no choice but to allow my thoughts to wander into forbidden territory. My eyes went to the island as I considered myself being teased by Zane in this very kitchen on this very island. I felt a shiver run through my body.
“Fuck,” he growled.
He pulled me out of my daydream and I took two steps back. I kept my eyes on him and he drew his brows together.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Nothing but the fact that I saw the reaction you had to what I said. I’m pretty certain you just considered the very real possibility of you and me together right here,” he said as he pointed to the island. “From what I can tell, sweetheart? You very much liked the whole idea.”
Was this guy a mind reader?
Now embarrassed, I looked away from him and out the windows of the kitchen to the mountains. Zane stepped in front of me, used his finger to turn my head toward his, and said, “Told you I know where you stand with not wanting a relationship, Emme. Also told you I would do my best to change your mind on that. Now, having just witnessed you inside your own head living out a fantasy, I’m definitely going to do everything I can to change your mind.”
Shit.
“Don’t you have to shower? Won’t we be late?” I asked, trying to distract Zane (and myself) from the very heated topic at hand.
He gave me a sexy grin and a wink when he said, “It’d definitely be worth being late for, sweetheart.”
I felt myself getting more and more turned on by this man. I was going to be in serious trouble if I didn’t start distancing myself from him.
“Make yourself comfortable,” he began. “I’ll be back in fifteen minutes…that is, unless you want to join me?”
I rolled my eyes at him. “Go take your shower, Zane.”
He smiled at me and turned to walk back to the stairs. I was such a bundle of nerves I couldn’t even begin to explore the rest of the house. I needed advice and decided to take a chance on asking for it. I pulled out my phone and called Monroe. The phone rang twice before she picked up.
“Merry Christmas!” she said.
I smiled inwardly and said, “Merry Christmas, mama.”
“What’s going on there?” she asked.
“I need help, Monroe. Please, though, you can’t say anything.”
“What? What’s wrong?”
“Promise me first, Monroe, that you won’t say anything to anyone. Not even Nikki or Charley.”
“Promise, babe. You are freaking me out. What is wrong?” she asked.
“I’m at Zane’s house right now and I am daydreaming about having sex with him in his kitchen which, I might add, is absolutely beautiful.”
“WHAT?!” she screeched.
“Stop yelling and focus, Monroe. He’s in the shower right now, but I don’t expect I have a lot of time to talk. Last night, Charley and I went out with Wes and Zane to Lou’s for his Christmas Eve celebration. When the guys brought us back to the condo I asked them if they wanted to come in and stay a while. I don’t know what came over me. I just didn’t want to be alone on Christmas Eve. Charley got my drift and scurried off with Wes. I asked Zane to stay the night with me.”
“Did you sleep with him?” she asked, shock filtering through her voice.
“No. Well, I mean, I slept with him in my bed, but we only slept. Actually, we kissed too, but we didn’t have sex.”
“Is he a good kisser?”
The excitement in her voice was unmistakable.
“Ugh, yes, Monroe he is. In fact, I think he’s very, very good with his mouth, but you need to stay focused.”
“Right, sorry. Please continue.”
“I had a nightmare last night. I’ve been having them again ever since the night you and Nikki left. Same nightmare every night, it just gets worse each night. Not going to get into the details of the nightmare now, but you can imagine I’m sure. Anyway, just before it got really, really bad, Zane woke me. He was a bit freaked, I think, but he handled it well. We talked a little this morning and he found out that while Charley and Wes were going to be off celebrating Christmas with his family this morning that I’d be staying home by myself. He refused to let me stay alone saying that it was Christmas and nobody should spend the holidays lonely.”
“I knew I liked him. He’s one of the good ones, Em. I can feel it in bones. So how did you end up at his place ready to have sex?”
“He forced me here.”
“What? That doesn’t sound like him. Are you ok?”
“Not like that, Monroe. He told me that he wanted me to go with him to celebrate Christmas with his family today and when I declined he said that he would call his family and tell them he couldn’t make it because he refused to let me stay by myself all day.”
I paused waiting for her reaction, but got nothing.
“Are you there?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m here. I’m just busy smiling from ear to ear jumping up and down that this guy has come into your life.”
“I can’t do this. You know I can’t. The problem is I keep getting distracted by his handsome face and his sexy voice. Fuck, Monroe, his voice. I could listen to that man talk all day long.”
“This is the best Christmas I’ve ever had,” she responded, giddily.
“You are not helping me.”
“Babe, what do you want me to say? You need this. You need whatever it is that Zane is willing to and can offer you. If you don’t want serious, tell him. But, in the meantime, if he can help you start living and feeling again, I think it’s worth the risk.”
“He said he knows where I stand with a relationship, but he plans to try to change my mind. This won’t end well, mama.”
“I think just the opposite is the case. This is going to end very well if you open your mind and your heart to it. Give yourself that chance, Em. You deserve it.”
“Well I’m no better off now than I was before I called you. I’ve got to go now. Merry Christmas.”
“Oh, it definitely is now. Love you, Em.”
“Love you, too.”
I disconnected the call and tossed my phone back in my purse. I stood, looking out at the mountains from the kitchen window as I leaned over the island with my elbows resting on the countertop and my chin in my palms. I contemplated my current predicament and what Monroe said. I knew where she was coming from and logically it all made sense, but when choices you made resulted in the death of someone you love and care about, it makes you consider every possible outcome of the situations you face from that point forward. In this particular case, I could daydream about all of the good things that could happen if I pursued a relationship with Zane, but the reality is that in doing so I could face heartache that I might not be able to recover from again. Someone else could get hurt and I wasn’t sure I could take that chance.
“Jesus Christ.”
I quickly stood and turned around.
“Are you ok?” I asked Zane, who stood about ten feet away from me with his hands balled in fists at his sides as his jaw clenched. If the island wasn’t behind me I’d have taken several steps back.
“You’re going to be the death of me, woman.”
I swallowed hard at the harsh reality of that statement. He had no idea how dangerous being around me could be. Still feeling nervous I asked, “What?”
“Sweetheart, you aren’t making it very easy for me to try to respect the fact that you only want to be friends.”
“Zane, I don’t understand. What are you talking about?”
“Maybe it makes me a dick to say this, but I’m sure you’ve already got to know you have a great ass. Seriously, it’s fucking phenomenal. Actually, your ass and tits are equally as glorious. Problem is, I walk into my kitchen with you bent over the island and your gorgeous ass is taunting me. It’s taking everything I have to not act on it and, now, I’m the one fantasizing about the island.”
Oh shit.
I knew most people considered those parts to be my two greatest physical assets. It came as no surprise, but hearing Zane say it made me hot and bothered. I was pretty certain my face was flushed and so in an effort to not let him see that I simply dropped my head to the floor.
“Damn it,” Zane mumbled as he walked toward me. When he was standing in front of me he tilted my head so that I was forced to look at him. “Emme, I wasn’t trying to make you uncomfortable.”
“It’s ok, Zane. I’m used to it.”
His brows drew together and he said, “Used to what?”
I didn’t want to tell him the full truth of what that meant so I simply stated, “I know that those two physical features are more…prominent on my body compared to other women’s bodies.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” he answered.
I shrugged my shoulders and looked away.
“Emme, look at me,” he demanded.
My eyes immediately shot to his.
“You have a beautiful body, sweetheart. You have nothing to be embarrassed about or ashamed of.”
I was really uncomfortable with this conversation and needed to move on so I stared at him a beat before saying, “Thank you, Zane.”
Thankfully, Zane quickly changed the topic of conversation and asked, “Ready to go meet my family?”
“Do I have a choice?” I retorted.
“Of course you do. I can call them and tell them I’m not coming and I’ll take you back to your place…or we can stay here.”
Yeah, that was definitely not going to be good. Perhaps being around other people would help distract me from all the sexual tension with Zane.
“Ok, yes, let’s go so you can introduce me to your family,” I said as I turned to pick up my purse and head toward the door.
I heard Zane laughing behind me.
Twenty minutes later, we were pulling into the driveway of Zane’s parents’ house. It was a one-story ranch home. As we walked up to the front door, I felt nerves in my belly. This was crazy. I had just met Zane a few weeks ago and now I was about to have lunch with his family on Christmas Day. The front door opened as we approached and I stopped dead in my tracks. I took in the man in front of me and then looked to Zane. When I looked back at the man in the door he was now chuckling.
“I thought you had an older brother and a younger brother,” I said.
“I do,” he replied, smiling at me.
“So, are you a twin?” I asked.
He laughed. “We get that all the time. No, I’m not. This is my older brother, Levi. Levi, this is my friend, Emme.”
“Your friend?” he repeated to Zane with eyebrows raised.
“Yes, fucker, my friend. Think you could be decent and let her in the house?”
Levi looked to me and said, “My apologies, Emme. It’s very nice to meet you. Please, come on in.”
I stepped inside the house not feeling any less anxious when another equally as hot man walked into the foyer shouting, “Zane’s here.” As soon as he saw me he bellowed, “And he’s brought a girl with him.”
Zane dropped his head back and looked to the ceiling as he pleaded, “Give me the strength.”
Hot guy number two, actually three if you counted Zane, walked right up to me wrapped an arm around my shoulders and said, “Merry Christmas, beautiful.”
I felt my face flush as I looked away from him and mumbled, “Merry Christmas.”
“Fuck me. He’s found a shy one,” Levi said.
“I’m Cruz,” I heard the voice next to me say. “You are?” I took him in. I could see the similarities in certain features between him and Zane, but where Levi and Zane looked nearly identical with their dark hair, exquisite bone structure, thick brows, and captivating eyes, Cruz was nearly their opposite. He had thicker, slightly longer hair. It was not nearly as dark, but definitely nowhere close to blonde. He did have the same blue eyes and chiseled jaw, but his features were a bit softer when compared with Zane and Levi. All three of them were gorgeous in their own right with incredible bodies, one of which was still currently pressed up against mine. In addition, all three of them towered over me, even with my heels on.
“Emme,” I answered, introducing myself to Cruz.
“Think you can get your hands off her?” Zane demanded.
I turned to see him clenching his jaw and seething. Crap.
Levi spoke up and offered, “Getting a little worked up over someone who is just a friend, Zane.”
“Friend?” Cruz asked Zane with the same raised eyebrows. His eyes came back to me and he continued talking. “Well in that case, beautiful, let me…” he got out before Zane cut him off.
“Cruz. Her name is Emme. Hands off now.”
Cruz held his hands up and confessed, “Just trying to be nice, big brother.”
“Oh my goodness, you poor thing,” I heard a female voice say amidst all the commotion. I looked up to see a pretty woman walking toward me with her arms outstretched. “Emme is it? My name’s Trisha.” She wrapped an arm around me and looked at her sons. “What is wrong you three?” She pointed to Levi and Cruz first and reprimanded them. “You two know better. Why do you always insist on pushing buttons?” Turning her attention to Zane, she advised, “And you…this poor girl is scared out of her mind. Next time, it would be a good idea to let me know you are bringing someone so that I can prevent this from happening.”
“I didn’t mean to intrude today, Mrs. Cunningham. I’m sorry this was just sprung on you,” I interjected, looking anywhere but any of their faces. I felt extremely awkward.
“Fuck. Emme, you don’t need to apologize. I asked you to be here. You aren’t intruding.”
“Mouth, Zane,” his mother said before she turned to me. “Honey, call me Trisha. And despite his foul language Zane is right. You are more than welcome to be here. You can come help me in the kitchen and leave these boys to do what they will. It’s nice to have another woman in the house.”
As we walked out of the foyer through to the kitchen I heard Zane mumble, “Motherfuckers.”
“I heard that,” his mother yelled back. I couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.
“I brought some homemade Christmas cookies with me. My roommate, who is also my best friend, and I spent the better part of the day yesterday baking. I didn’t want to come here empty-handed,” I explained as I held the tray out to her.
She took the tray from me and said, “Thanks, Emme. If there’s one thing I know, those boys can put away the cookies.”
As we entered the kitchen and moved farther away from the boys I was able to take in my surroundings. The house had an open floor plan where right off the kitchen was the dining room with a table that was already set for what I could only assume would be a heck of a feast considering the wonderful smells in the room. Off the dining room toward the back side of the house was a very large, comfortable family room that had been decorated with a Christmas tree and stockings hung from the fireplace. I turned around when I heard footsteps and a deep voice asking, “What’s all the commotion?”
This had to be Zane’s dad. Zane bore a striking resemblance to the man who I had to admit was very good looking. He was tall, in great shape, and had that voice that was so very similar to Zane’s. I wondered for a moment if that was one of the things that made his wife fall in love with him.
“Oh goodness,” he gasped as he realized I was standing there. “Hello, I’m David. Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas, Mr. Cunningham. I’m Emme,” I revealed, stretching out my arm to shake his hand.
“Please dear, call me David. You come with Zane?” he asked as he continued to hold my hand in his.
I nodded.
For a moment, I felt his hand tighten around mine before he let it go.
“David, honey, you need to have a chat with those boys. They tortured Emme when she came in,” Trisha said.
“Trish, my love, when are you going to accept the fact that those boys are always going to torment each other? It’s in their nature. Talking to them isn’t going to change a damn thing.”
I listened to the two of them go back and forth about their boys while admiring the way they spoke with each other. Even though she was frustrated with how her sons had acted I could tell from her conversation with her husband that not only did they care very deeply for their children, but also that they were very much in love with each other. David repeatedly called her ‘my love’ when he spoke to her. It was very heartwarming to witness.
I went about helping Trisha get the food in serving dishes and took it to the dining room table. Minutes later, Zane walked into the kitchen followed by his brothers. I had to admit, it took my breath away. Zane edged out his brothers ever so slightly in the looks department, but they were undoubtedly one good-looking bunch.
“Zane, honey, will you set a place for Emme at the table?” Trisha asked him.
He nodded and got to it. Not much later, Trisha and I had successfully brought all the food to the table and we were all sitting down to eat. She made stuffed chicken breasts, potatoes, tons of veggies, and homemade cheddar biscuits. Everything tasted amazing and I made sure to ask her for her recipe for the biscuits. Thankfully, once everyone was sitting down to eat the conversation from earlier that day had been forgotten.
“So how did you two meet?” Levi asked.
“My roommate, Charley, is dating Wes,” I answered. “Zane and I met a couple weeks ago at Lou’s when Charley and I were out celebrating her birthday with two of our friends from California.”
“Wes is dating someone?” Cruz asked, seemingly dumbfounded.
I’m not sure where my courage came from, but I said, “He really seems to care a lot for her and he’s made my friend happier than she’s been in a long time. I hope everything works out for them because she’s been through a lot and deserves a bit of happiness.”
I could feel myself getting choked up so I tried to blink away the tears threatening to form. Zane grabbed my hand under the table and squeezed. I looked to him. He searched my face with concern so I did my best to ease that by smiling at him.
So, the bright side of the whole situation was that the guys were all in a great mood and trying to include me in the conversation. Aside from my defense of Charley and Wes’ relationship, it was never forced or awkward. They learned all about my photography business and I learned that while Levi and Cruz occasionally went snowboarding for fun, Zane was the only one who ever did it professionally. Levi started a private investigations business quite a few years ago and shortly afterward, Cruz joined him. Levi had a team of guys who were very good, and apparently, he was very highly sought after in Rising Sun and the surrounding areas.
Zane and I hung with his family for a while after lunch, but as he promised me he’d make sure we were back to my place before Charley and Wes got there he told his family we had to get going. This was, of course, not before everyone had a sampling of the cookies I brought. They all loved them or, they at least claimed to love them. Nearly half the tray was gone by the time Zane and I were ready to leave, so I assumed they couldn’t be making it up. I thanked them all for their hospitality and kindness before we left and every single one of them pulled me into a hug and wished me a Merry Christmas. I heard Zane growl when his brothers hugged me, but they didn’t seem to be the least bit phased by it.
After we left his parents’ house, Zane and I stopped back at his house briefly so that I could grab my car before we made our way to my place. As promised, Zane had me home before Charley and Wes got back.
“Thanks for inviting me to go with you today,” I said to Zane as we walked into the house and straight to the kitchen. Once I put my purse down on the counter, I turned around to face him and continued, “You are very lucky. You have a great family and I’m really thankful they were gracious enough to allow me to join in on a special occasion such as this.”
“You’re welcome, Emme. Though, if I have my way, this will just be the first of many occasions that you celebrate with us.”
I really appreciated his determination, but I felt horrible that he wanted something that would never be. I tilted my head, looked at his beautiful face, and felt my heart break because I knew that if my life hadn’t taken such horrible turns Zane and I could have possibly had a chance.
“Zane…I know you’ve been teasing me and joking about this all day, but I really don’t want to give you any mixed signals. Maybe I was wrong for asking for what I did last night and I’m sorry if I’ve given you the impression that there could be more. Deep down I think you really are one of the good ones. Unfortunately, this type of thing isn’t in the cards for me.”
“You’ve been up front with me from the start, Emme. Any effort I put into trying to change your mind is my own choice. Just know, I’m not joking about it. You aren’t going to always feel this way and I imagine you won’t want to be alone forever. We just recently met. I think you are someone worth getting to know a little better. Right now, if you can only offer friendship then I’m willing to take that.”
My eyes got wet and a lump formed in my throat. I tried to swallow past it, but to no avail. A single tear fell from each of my eyes and I croaked out, “I’m sorry, Zane.”
“Christ, Emme,” Zane said as he swiped his thumbs across my cheeks. “Sweetheart, don’t apologize. It’s evident you are hurting and clearly there is something bigger than me going on right now. Don’t worry about me. Take care of yourself and if you need someone along the way to help you through it, I’ll be here for you. That’s what friends do, right?”
I couldn’t speak, so I just nodded at him.
His eyes searched my face a bit before he asked, “You know that no Christmas is complete without watching A Christmas Story, right?”
And just like that, Zane took away the hurt and guilt I was feeling.
“I love that movie,” I said smiling up at him.
“Then you’re in luck because I picked up my copy of it when we stopped back at my house to get your car. Want to watch?”
I nodded furiously at him.
He chuckled, wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and walked with me from the kitchen to the family room.
Ten minutes before the movie ended, Wes and Charley walked in. While Charley and I made dinner, the boys hung together in the family room watching television. I’m sure both would have preferred to have been with us in the kitchen, but I think they both knew that Charley and I needed our time together, too. Sadly, I couldn’t bring myself to tell my best friend about my trip with Zane to his house or to meet his family. She asked questions about my day with Zane, but I was vague. I didn’t want her getting excited about something that I knew wouldn’t be going anywhere. Thankfully, she seemed to catch on quickly that I wasn’t up for discussing the situation with Zane so we moved on to other topics, such as her day with Wes, meeting his parents, her Christmas gift, and then, we exchanged gifts with each other.
We finished making dinner, ate with the guys, and had a great night. It was, by far, the best day I had had in many, many months. When Zane finally got up to leave, Wes and Charley said good night and took off down the hall toward her bedroom. I walked Zane to the front door.
I stood in front of him and looked up at him, smiling. He wrapped a hand around the back of my neck and squeezed gently.
“Thank you for today,” I said to him.
“Wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere that you weren’t today.”
“I feel like I need to do something to repay you for what you’ve done for me, between both last night and all day today. This was easily the best day I’ve had in a very long time, Zane. I know I acted like a tough guy saying that I’d be fine being alone today, but the reality is that I would have been miserable and lonely. Thank you for not allowing me to feel that today.”
Zane eyes warmed and his face softened.
“You don’t need to do anything to repay me. Just knowing that I made the right choice in staying with you today is payment enough. I don’t need anything else, Emme,” he began. Then, he flashed his sexy grin and said, “Though, I won’t turn down a good night kiss if you are really feeling indebted to me.”
I rolled my eyes at him. Typical guy.
“Friends don’t kiss, Zane.”
“Sure they do. We did last night and we were just friends then, right?”
He did have a point.
Since it was Christmas and he had gone out of his way to make the day good for me I figured I could give him this.
“Ok. You win,” I said.
I pressed up on my toes as I put my hands to his shoulders. Zane’s hand at my neck tightened ever so slightly as he slowly bent his head down to meet mine. My lips gently brushed his before I decided that if I was going to give him this I might as well do it right. With my mind made up I pressed my lips to his and he pulled my body up against his. I then gently bit his bottom lip. I kissed the spot my teeth had grazed over before I let my tongue come out to tease his lips. He groaned and pulled me even tighter to his body with his other hand that was now resting just above my ass. My hands moved to his hair and my tongue slipped past his lips into his mouth. He took it and gave me his in return. I could feel the hard length of his arousal pressing into me and I moaned.
This was going to get out of control really quick if I didn’t stop it. I tore my mouth from his and whispered, “Zane, we have to stop.”
With his forehead pressed to mine and his eyes closed he whispered back, “Fuck, sweetheart. You are so damn sexy.”
“Zane…” I said, trailing off because I didn’t know what else to say. I was turned on and this was not easy.
He pulled his head back from mine and looked at me. I watched him as his jaw clenched. I could tell he was thinking so I stayed quiet. Eventually, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and said, “Going to need your number, Emme.”
“My number?” I questioned.
“Yeah.”
“For what?”
“Only way I can get to know you better is if I can talk to you. Besides, I imagine all your other friends have your number. It’s only fair that I get it, too.”
So, I gave him my number. He tucked his phone back into his pocket and looked back at me.
“Good night, Emme.”
“Good night, Zane.”
With that, he leaned forward, kissed my forehead, and turned to walk out the door.