Page 87 of Off the Mark
He laughed, rich and warm, and pleasure hummed through my veins.
“How about you?” I asked.
“After lunch, Dean told me I poured syrup into my coffee instead of creamer. Kinda gives you a glimpse into my frazzled mental state. Also, why the hell are we talking right now?”
Rowan looped his arm around my waist and tugged me against him, our lips meeting in a kiss as hot and hungry as this morning. I smiled into the motion, felt him do the same, shivering as his hand slid along my spine. He claimed my mouth with a focused intensity. I pressed up, seeking more of his taste, his heat, the powerful muscles shifting beneath that shirt.
This kiss, right now.That kiss, this morning. My body’s overwhelming reaction to these weeks of Rowan’s for-the-audience affection hadn’t been pretend, hadn’t been just a consequence of my recent dry spell. Because if I thought a few seconds of neck nuzzling was too hot to handle, being skillfully devoured by Rowan on that desk felt so perfect, soright, it scared me a little.
I’d always known it, hadn’t I? Why I’d said no to him all those years. Rowan thought I was behind that bar, playing it cool.
When I’d only ever been playing it safe.
Our kiss ended on a shared, shaky breath. I nudged the tip of my nose against his, something stirring in my chest when I realized that he was blushing.
“Syrup in your coffee, huh?” I whispered.
“Yeah, turns out I thought about you all the time before we kissedandcan’t stop thinking about you after.” He stroked his thumb under my chin, eyes searching mine. “You’re still stopping me in my tracks, Charlie Maddox.”
The depth of my wanting was almost too deep.
“I, uh…” I bit the tip of my thumb. “This is my eleventh outfit change. I had to call mydadto ask him and Penny if I looked okay.”
Rowan winked. “You’re looking at outfit change number seven on me.”
I stepped down, smoothing my hands over my clothing. “I look fine though, right? I’ve never been asked to meet a boyfriend’s family before.”
“You look stunning,” he said softly. “Alice already loves you. I swung by the house after work to drop off a few things for dinner and she wanted me to use the computer to show her videos of some of your races. She’s edging close toobsessed fanterritory already, so be warned.”
Now my cheeks were going red. “I tried to jot down some of the best bar fights I broke up at Jolene’s, in case she wants some juicy entertainment.”
He swallowed. “She’ll…yeah, any and all of your best stories will be like music to her ears right now. Speaking of, are you ready?”
I tried to peek around his massive shoulders into his living room. I spotted framed baseball posters and a massive, L-shaped couch before Rowan clicked his tongue and pulled the door shut behind him.
“But I wanna see your house,” I protested.
“You’re looking at my house, gorgeous,” he said. “Stoop, sidewalk lawn chairs for drinking beer and saving parking spots, and the Phillies.”
He pointed—hanging from one of the second-story windows was a Phillies flag, fluttering in the night breeze. The brick was well taken care of, his windowsills a bright white, flowers looking freshly potted.
“Insideis what I meant.”
Rowan cracked a sinful smile. “I know what you meant. But we’ve got important places to be. And if you step inside my house, I’m dragging you into that bed.” He placed his hands on my hips, turning me around to the sidewalk as my toes curled in my boots. He nipped at my ear and whispered, “I’m gonna need all night and then some to show you why you’re all I ever think about.”
Goosebumps shivered across my skin. All my usual witty comebacks failed me, vanishing in the fire of my longing. So I mumbled out something like, “Sounds…sounds good.”
And he didn’t tease me through my flustered response either. Instead, he kissed me on the temple and squeezed his fingers in mine. A second later, I was finally walking the rest of the way down to the sidewalk, Rowan close behind.
“I can’t imagine why the dumpster fires you dated in the past never brought you around to meet people,” he said.
I tossed him an exasperated look. “They weren’t all dumpster fires, Rowan.Some of themwere straight-up garbage.”
He laughed again and all the hair rose on my arms. “Their fucking loss.”
“What about you? Have you ever been brought around to charm a bunch of parents?”
His smile turned bashful. “Nah, I’m never ’round long enough to merit an invitation to something as respectable as afamily dinner. But at least we’re both amateurs again. Levels the playing field.”
