It took all I had to drop Kylie off at her apartment and leave her behind. I saw the look in her eyes, that drunken look that beckoned for me to come upstairs, but I wasn’t that kind of man and I wasn’t going to become that kind of man simply because Kylie wanted me to be. She had way too much alcohol in her system. Three glasses of wine was nothing compared to the four glasses and three shots I’d seen her take that evening. Escorting her up to her apartment and leaving her without so much as a kiss took every ounce of courage and energy I could muster.

But I knew I’d done the right thing.

Despite being swamped with work on a Friday afternoon, I couldn't get her off my mind. I’d been trying to avoid her all day, and I had plans to avoid her all weekend. I needed a couple days to clear my head and give her space, especially since I knew she was trying to unpack herself. I had known the second she’d brought Adam into our conversation that she needed a brief ear to listen. And I listened as she gave me proof of the fact that she really was trying to make sense of things. I didn’t need to be impeding on that. Despite that we sat and talked for four hours without realizing it, I didn’t need to be interjecting into her world any longer.

No matter how badly Doug wanted me to.

But as I cleared my desk and stuffed some work into my briefcase to take home, I didn’t find my way back to my house. I didn’t find my way back to the bar. I didn’t even find my way to dinner.

I found my way to Kylie’s apartment. I was holding a damn pizza and knocking on her door before I had a chance to stop myself.

The door swung open and there she stood in nothing but a tank top and shorts. No bra. No robe. Her hair piled high on her head. Pajamas. Kylie was settling in for the night. My eyes raked down her form, taking in her bare legs and the way her curves blossomed in her outfit. Her breasts hung against her body and her nipples puckered at the sight of me. I ripped my gaze up to hers, and she seemed shocked, but the smile that crawled across her cheeks was unmistakable.

She was happy to see me, and I was happy to see her.

“Have you eaten dinner yet?” I asked.

She giggled and shook her head before she stepped off to the side to usher me in.

“Come on in. I just sat down for the evening,” she said.

I forced my gaze out the window so I wouldn't keep staring at her. She looked hot as hell, and my cock was already threatening to rage out of control.

“Pepperoni, bacon, olives, and onions,” I said. “Large, with a cheesy bread crust.”

“So, you remembered,” Kylie said with a grin.

“One of the many things I learned about you at the bar the other night.”

“I still can’t believe we talked that long. And you came at the perfect time. I was about to pop a frozen meal in the microwave.”

“A frozen meal? No, no, no. You’ll eat a fresh pizza and have a refreshing soda.”

“I’ve got bottled water, milk, orange juice, beer, and very cheap wine,” she said.

“Then you’ll have a fresh pizza with beer,” I said.

“What would you like to drink?”

“I’ll take a water.”

I watched her walk away, my eyes following the jiggling of her beautiful ass. I walked over and set the pizza on her coffee table, then picked up the remote control and started thumbing through television stations. My eyes kept a lookout for something to watch, a nice movie for a backdrop to our evening in or something like that. Kylie slid a bottle of water into my hand before she started squealing.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Stop, stop. Go back two channels. Go, go.”

I clicked the remote until the screen filled with a young Tom Hanks.

“I learn something new about you every day,” I said.

“I love this documentary. Well, documentaries in general, but this one takes the cake. Have you ever seen it?” she asked.

I looked down into her sparkling eyes, so full of excitement and glee.

“I didn’t know you were a documentary buff,” I said.

“I love them, but I can never find anyone to watch them with. Do you watch them?”

“All the time,” I said. “I just watched that one on home births versus hospital births.”

“I saw that on Netflix. This one’s good too. Really good in fact. I keep telling myself to watch it again whenever I get the time, but I haven’t yet.”

“Well, you have the time now,” I said. “Want me to grab us some plates?”

“Plates?” she asked as she flipped open the pizza box. “What are we, fifty?”

She winked at me as a chuckle fell from my lips. Kylie fell to the couch with a slice in her hand and an open beer in the other. She really was an iconic woman. Her hair tousled and her breasts flopping around and her legs uncovered and barren. She didn’t have a care in the world, and she looked breathtaking in the moment. I opened my bottle of water and sat beside her, then reached for a slice as we started to watch some documentary on American politics.

It really was an interesting watch.

Kylie was wholly focused on it, and sometimes she’d interject with knowledge of politics that greatly astounded me. I considered myself brushed up on the ideas of economics and business in regard to how our governmental system worked, but Kylie knew much more than even my mind had acquired over the years.

“You know you’re distracting me, right?” I asked.

“What are you talking about?” Kylie asked. “I’m just sitting here.”

“You’re sitting there and interjecting with all these little tidbits that make me want to look at you. You’re distracting me.”

“Then I’ll stop talking.”

“That won’t help,” I said.

“Then what will help, you crotchety old man?”

I reached over for her body and pulled her into my lap, my hands caressing her curves. Her eyes widened in shock, but she didn’t make a move to get off me. I rounded my hands over her ass and pulled her closer to me, listening as a light sigh fell from her lips.

“What’ll help is getting rid of these clothes,” I said. “They’re very distracting on your body.”

Kylie bite down on her lower lip, and I snapped. Fucking hell, this woman was beautiful. She was intelligent beyond all reason and had curves my cock could no longer ignore. I slid my hands up her back as her forehead fell to mine, and soon the pizza and the documentary were long forgotten about.

Her lips fell to mine and I sucked on that precious lower lip, feeling her grind herself into my growing dick.

I had to have her. I had to feel her. I had to make her mine again.