Page 53 of Fire and Rain
She sucked in a breath, shivered. “Sean.”
But he wasn’t finished.
He angled her head, and claimed her mouth again, teasing her tongue with his, blood racing hot through his veins. She drew him closer, answered his teasing with strokes of her own, her fingers curling in the hair at his nape.
From somewhere nearby, came the sound of a garage door opening.
Shit.
If they were seen kissing…
He released her, stepped back, trembling from head to toe, whether from the chill or from desire, he couldn’t say. “I should go.”
“Don’t be silly.” She took his hand, her fingers threading easily with his. “Come in and dry off before you get hypothermia. We can talk.”
Sean should have said goodnight. He should have walked to his vehicle and driven back to the barracks, but he didn’t. Instead, he followed her inside, his mind reeling.
But she was right. They needed to talk.
“I’ll put water on to boil for tea.” She smiled. “You know where the towels are. Just toss your wet stuff in the dryer.”
While she busied herself in the kitchen, he removed his boots and damp socks, then walked to the bathroom and undressed, wet down to his skin. He took a bath towel from the cupboard near the door and dried off. As he rubbed the towel over his hair, he caught his reflection in the mirror.
Do you know what you just did, buddy?
Hell, no. He’d gone off the edge of the map tonight.
Butdamn.
In his twenties, he’d dated lots of women, wasting far too many hours on dating apps. He’d had more than a few first kisses in his life. But nothing could compare to what he’d just experienced with Eden. Their kiss had lasted only a few minutes, but it had rocked his world.
He wrapped the towel around his hips, grateful that his erection was gone. It would have been hard to have any kind of seriously conversation while pitching a tent.
Now what?
Hell, he didn’t know.
Eden said she had feelings for him. She thought she wanted him. But Justin had been gone for only five months, and this was so sudden.
Or was it?
Hadn’t Sean felt it, too—this growing attraction?
He had, and Eden knew it.
But he couldn’t get involved with her. Justin had been his best friend, and if Sean had done his job right, Justin might still be here. So, what was Sean supposed to do now?
Just keep your dick in your … towel.
He gathered his wet clothes from the tub where he’d dropped them, opened the bathroom door, and walked around the corner to the laundry room. He tossed them in the dryer, set the time for forty minutes, and pushed START.
“Do you need help?” she called to him.
“I work on complicated avionics equipment, and I have used one before. I’m sure I can figure it out.” He chuckled to himself, then turned and saw her.
Geezus.
She stood in the hallway, wearing a smile and her sleep shirt and bathrobe, part of a sleek thigh showing, her feet bare. “I had to change out of the dress. You got it wet.”
