Page 53 of The Complete Truth Duet
We talked for over an hour. Eventually, the conversation moved to the hall (me) and the bathroom (him), where he’d started the monumental task of putting my bathroom back together, but he didn’t stop creeping.
More than once, I’d caught his hooded gaze glued to my legs, my breasts, or my throat. Gorgeous.
I decided right then and there that Penn Walker could creep on me any day of the week.
And I would creep on him while he creeped on me, and together, we could be the creepiest creeping couple who ever creeped. I believe those had been my exact words to him while I was sitting on the floor when, suddenly, I’d laughed so hard I’d snorted.
Thus taking us back to me folding over on the wood floor, rescuing my beer, and dying of embarrassment.
Penn’s laughter got louder as he approached. I rolled flat to my back and opened my eyes in time to see him crawling on his hands and knees to hover above me. He plucked the beer from my grip and set it somewhere nearby, and then his weight settled on top of me.
Head to toe.
Chest to chest.
His mouth was gloriously close as he asked, “Are you drunk?”
I scoffed. “Lie. And no.”
“You laugh so hard you snort often?”
“Lie. And yes.”
He grinned, wide and toothy. It was by far the least attractive smile I had ever seen him wear and it still made my pulse spike.
“I love when you laugh,” he whispered before sweeping his lips across mine.
I lifted my head to keep contact, but he was gone. “I love that you actually know how to laugh. I was worried for a while there. All the stoic silences were really throwing me off.”
I got another kiss.
“It’s getting late. I should probably get going.”
“Noooo,” I whined, the heat from my flush, drunk cheeks spreading across the rest of my body. Arching my back, I pressed my breasts against his chest. “You could stay. The girls should be back soon, but they won’t bother us if we’re in my room. And if you’re just going to sit in the hall all night, watching me, you might as well do it up close and personal.”
“That would make it easier.”
I slid my hand around his back and under his shirt. “I promise to wear pants.”
“I can’t make that same promise, Cora.”
I nipped at his bottom lip. “Okay, so pants optional. We’ll see how it goes.”
“I can tell you how it’s gonna go.” He returned my nip. “It’s not.”
I exaggerated a pout.
He kissed it away. “Stop giving me hell, woman. I’m pretending to be a gentleman here.”
I huffed and rolled my eyes. “Fine, but if you ask me, this seems like a gross misuse of your cold, hard cash. The girls aren’t even back yet.”
Smooth and completely unhindered by the alcohol, he climbed to his feet. I attempted to follow him, but I did it fully affected by the alcohol and without a graceful bone in my body.
“Whoa!” He caught my arm when the floor started to rise toward me. “How much did you drink?”
I clung to his strong arm only partially for balance. “Apparently, more than I should have. Though this totally explains the snort.”
“Come here,” he mumbled, scooping me off my feet with an arm under my knees.
“Wow,” I breathed. “You weren’t lying about the gentleman bit.”
He walked the short distance to my bedroom door and jutted his chin at it. “Open it. I’ll hang until the girls get back. But it’s probably safest for your skull if we get you horizontal again.”
I beamed up at him. “Really?”
“Yeah. You’re drunk on, like, two tablespoons of beer. Someone’s got to keep an eye on you until your parents get back.”
I slapped his chest. “I meant about you staying. But, for the record, I had four full beers, thank you very much.”
“Four beers isn’t helping your case. But yeah, Cora, I’ll stay for a little while longer.”
Victory sang in my veins.
I was nowhere near ready for it to be over.
For one night, everything outside of my apartment had disappeared.
Marcos.
Dante.
Manuel.
Even Nic.
My whole wretched life faded into the background.
For one night, I’d talked and laughed with a gorgeous, kind, and thoughtful man.
For one night, responsibility hadn’t been suffocating me.
For one freaking night, I had been free.
Tracing the curve of his lip, I whispered, “Truth or lie?”
“Truth.”
“I could get used to doing this with you.”
His eyes flashed dark and a shadow passed over his face. “Please don’t.”
I frowned, alarm bells screaming in the back of my mind.
But before I had the chance to question his odd answer, he ordered, “Get the door, baby.”
Baby. Le sigh.
I was smiling all over again.
I twisted the lock and pushed it open. Penn didn’t make it one step over the threshold before he fired off a string of muttered expletives.
“This is your room?”
