Page 69 of The Deal Breaker
She nodded. “Didn’t yours?”
Heat rushed up his neck. “To be honest, I wasn’t paying attention to my feet.”
And his temperature still hadn’t settled. Nor his pulse. His breathing was off, too.
She met his gaze. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
He tried not to stare at her full, lush lips. Tried and failed. “It’s meant to be one.”
“I’d better move.” She scooted off his lap, and he instantly missed her warmth. “Your legs must be numb.”
“Not quite.” A good thing she wasn’t too far away or he’d be moving closer to her. “But if they were, it would be worth it. I enjoy kissing you.”
“Same.” She smiled softly. “I could get used to it.”
“Me, too.” It might be too soon to admit he was there. That reminded him of the reason he’d stopped kissing. “Except how does kissing work with us being friends?”
“You put your lips against mine.” Amusement gleamed in her gaze. “Or I put mine against yours.”
“Ha-ha. It’s just…” His knee bounced. Dash placed his hand on top of it. Around her, he was like a livewire full of nervous energy and attraction. “I don’t want anything to ruin our friendship.”
Her forehead creased, turning her expression into a worried one. “You think our kissing might?”
“I have no idea, but I want to make sure it won’t.” Dash kept his voice steady, but his concerns didn’t make that easy. “I screwed things up once. Now, we’re still trying to get our friendship back on track. Add in my breaking it off with Raina and you starting culinary school tomorrow, a relationship…”
“Whoa.” She touched his head. “Stop thinking so hard.”
“What?” he asked, confused.
“We’ve had one—well, let’s call it one and a half kisses, and your brilliant brain is moving at light speed.” She lowered her arm and then smiled. “Slow down, okay?”
He had been thinking in terms of eternity, so maybe she had a valid point. “What do you suggest?”
“Your entire body tensed when you said relationship, so forget labels.”
“No friends-with-kissing-benefits, then?” he joked, trying to lighten the mood.
She groaned. “Please, no. But we can focus on being better friends and becoming closer.”
Did having her sit on his lap count as close? Probably better if he didn’t ask that.
“Things will never be how they used to be. We’re not the same people we were then,” she continued. “It’s up to us to define what friendship means for us now.”
“Like if we kiss?”
Iris nodded. “The entire time we’ve known each other, all I’ve wanted is to make things easier on you. This is no different. As long as we promise to protect our friendship, no matter what, this should work.”
She’d done that for him over the years, especially since he hired her, but what she said raised a question he needed to ask. This shouldn’t be all about him. “Is this what you want?”
A wistful expression crossed her face. “I’m okay with it for now.”
For now. Not forever.
Okay, Dash understood. She wanted the fairy-tale ending. Something he didn’t believe in. “You want more someday.”
Iris nodded. “Emphasis on someday. I can wait.”
Wait for him? Or someone else?
