His elbow brushes against mine. Just a small movement, but my skin burns from the contact.
“I don’t… uh…” Corbin clears his throat, searching for the words. A rare sight.
I turn to face him, and he’s already looking at me. “I told you I still find you attractive,” I remind him, though my voice is softer now, more vulnerable. “Maybe it was just… a weak moment.”
He lets out a rough chuckle, shaking his head. “A weak moment was when you stayed the night. That? That was…”
I hesitate, dragging my bottom lip between my teeth. “I was jealous,” I admit, watching his blue eyes sharpen, searching my face. “I might… sort of have these really confusing, complicated feelings when it comes to you. And I don’t know if it’s just leftover from the ten years we were together or if they’re…” I trail off, afraid to finish.
“New?” he asks.
I swallow hard, turning my gaze to Tate as he crashes into another car, laughing hysterically. “Maybe.”
Then Corbin reaches for me, his fingers curling gently around my arm, pulling me closer. I don’t resist. I never want to resist him.
“I was jealous, too,” he confesses, his voice like gravel. “When I saw you and Trey getting pizza.”
I frown. “You didn’t act like it.”
His thumb brushes over my skin, the barest touch. “I feel things, too, Jules.” His tone is soft, warm, raw. “New things. But also the old things.”
A slow smile tugs at my lips. “Are you saying you like me?”
He nods, his gaze darkening as he watches me. Really watches me. “I like you a lot.”
My breath stutters. We’re too close, our bodies aligned, heat swirling in the small space between us.
I miss him. God, I miss him.
Not just the way his lips felt against mine in the kitchen that night, but the way he kissed me before. The way his hands would slide into my hair and tilt my head back just right, like he knew exactly how to kiss me in a way that made my whole body weak.
“Then kiss me,” I whisper.
He blinks, surprised. “Really?”
I quickly check to make sure Tate is too busy slamming into another bumper car to notice. Then, I tilt my chin up, a silent challenge. “Now.”
Corbin doesn’t hesitate.
He crashes his lips against mine, and I melt instantly, completely.
His mouth moves with mine, slow at first, teasing, coaxing. But then I hook my arms around his neck and pull him closer, needing more. Needing all of him.
His hands find my curls, fingers tangling and tugging until my head tilts back, giving him more access, and he deepens the kiss. His tongue slides against mine, sending a shiver down my spine.
I don’t care that there are people around.
I don’t care that this is dangerous—too dangerous—for my heart.
Because right now, in his arms, nothing else matters.
Then suddenly, it’s over.
His fingers slip from my hair, his lips lingering for a beat longer before he finally pulls back.
My eyes flutter open, my chest heaving. His breathing is just as uneven, his expression torn between restraint and the same hunger I feel pulsing through my veins.
We stare at each other, lost in something neither of us is ready to name.
