Page 25 of Fallynn West

I could’ve sworn he blushed. His umber skin held a tint of red at his cheeks. Pushing his glasses up on his nose, Keondra thanked me and grabbed his beer.

After a refreshing gulp of my drink, I put my game face on. Even though escape rooms were a team bonding experience, I was also competitive. Throughout the game, whenever I was truly stumped on something, I would wait for him to figure it out. We escaped the room with ten minutes to spare, and as badly as I hated to admit it, he was the reason we got out so fast.

We took pictures, then we were led to a back area that was off-limits. I opened my mouth to ask Keondra if we were going in the right direction, but when the employee opened the door, I gasped at the sight before me.

For it to be a first date, Keondra did an amazing job. From the private escape room to the setup in front of me, I wasimpressed. Along the walkway, there were orange and black flower petals covering the ground with candles lighting the way to the table set up for two. Another bouquet of bush lilies was in the seat for me, along with a handwritten card from Keondra.

Colony,

I know this is small but thank you for giving me a chance to show you parts of me.

I might not be as open from the start, but I’m already starting to feel comfortable with you.

The connection is undeniable. All I ask is that you be patient with me.

With love,

Keondra

“Aw, Keondra. This is so sweet. You’re so thoughtful,” I expressed, reaching up and palming his cheek. “You’re right. The connectionisundeniable. This is all so different for me as well, especially with you being a parent to one of my littles.”

“Does that make you second-guess any of this?”

“No, it doesn’t.”

“Good, because even though we’re just getting started, I’m enjoying it.” He ended the sentence with a breathtaking kiss.

If that man didn’t stop kissing me the way he did.

Physical touch was obviously one of his love languages, and I would eagerly accept it every time. Keondra wrapped his arm around my waist to pull me in closer, deepening our kiss. It was taking everything in me not to be nasty and suck the taste of beer off his tongue. My hand found its way to his torso. The bricks aligning his stomach made me weak in the knees.

Anyone with eyes could see Keondra had a nice build underneath his clothing, but to feel the results of his hard workwas far more enticing than imagining it. I could bet he was a true work of art naked, easily deemed one of God’s favorites.

If it wasn’t for a server walking in, there was no telling when we would’ve stopped kissing. Keondra had me feeling like a middle school girl who had finally scored with her crush. Carefully, I rubbed the pad of my thumb over his bottom lip to remove my lip gloss and smirked.

“You’re going to be trouble for me, Colony.”

I tittered. “Good trouble, I hope.”

“Me too. You’ve increased my appetite but not for this food,” Keondra informed me in that deep baritone I could listen to all day. Those sultry brown eyes of his hungrily looked over me, and I thought about laying back on the table to be his meal. Being that I was already hot and bothered, he could dive right into a hot plate.

I closed my eyes and took deep breaths. “As pleasant as that sounds, we’re taking it slow, right?”

My eyes opened to meet his, and he nodded. “Slow and steady, but it’s not going to stop me from voicing how I feel.”

“And I don’t want it to. Trust me, I would love nothing more than to be spread across this table, but I want to continue with how we’re moving. I love our talks. I look forward to learning new things about you.”

“As I do you, Colony.” He pecked my lips once more and released it.

The desire to stay wrapped in his arms was heavy, but I knew if I did, my legs would be wrapped around his waist before too long.

When I wokeup to silence and feeling refreshed, it felt like something was wrong. I popped my eyes open and searched around for my phone to check the time. It was after eight in the morning, which meant my human alarm clock hadn’t come to wake me up. That was extremely unusual.

Tossing my legs over the bed, I stretched and rose to my feet. After going to the bathroom to relieve myself and wash my hands, I headed out front to see where my baby girl was. Both of us oversleeping wasn’t normal. The only time Kehlani did was when she wasn’t feeling well, and I prayed that wasn’t the case. We’d just gotten her better.

Maybe Aunt Faith had come to get her and allowed me to sleep in. She’d do that every once in a while, when she thought I needed rest.

My phone vibrating in my hand stopped me in my tracks. Colony’s name appeared on my screen, so I answered it and continued walking.