“Obviously,” he said with mock affront, clearly teasing me.
Campus wasn’t far from theStrip, andIlived just off campus in a cheap but safe apartment complex.Aswe pulled up to the three-story building,Ileaned forward to pay for the cab butArcherhanded him cash.Islid out of the door, thanked the cab driver, and then turned to thankArcherfor paying.
“The next time we go out andIwin big at blackjack, it can be your turn.”Hewinked at me.
I know he was teasing, but my mind was stuck on his wordsnext time.Wouldthere be a next time?Mightybold of him to assume, and yet,Ifound myself wanting that to happen too.
We walked to the stairwell up to the second floor, andIpulled out my keys to the door.Myhands were sweating asIunlocked and opened it.Iclosed and locked the door behind me—habit—and then turned to look back atArcherto offer him a drink.
“Sweetheart, we don’t need to do anything if you’re nervous,”Archersaid, taking his shoes off by the front door. “Wecan just have a drink and talk more if you want.”
Ugh.Iwas totally screwing this up.
“I’m not nervous about that…It’sjust…Well,I’venever had a one-night stand before and just brought someone home like this, soI’mnot sure what the protocol is,”Ibabbled, likely sounding like an idiot, butIalso felt like he needed to know.
He walked closer to me, putting his hand to the side of my face, his fingers sliding into my hair. “Goodto know you were going to make an exception for me, but there is no protocol.Youdo what you feel comfortable doing.Whateveryou want—you have the control here.”
I have the control.Theywere just words, but they gave me a little power in knowing that.
“WhateverIwant?”Iasked, staring into his eyes.Hishand was still on the side of my face, and he was only a foot away from me. “Iwant you to kiss me.”
He smiled back. “ThatIcan do.”
He leaned forward and kissed me.Softlyat first, before his hand wrapped around the back of my head and he pulled me closer.Hedevoured my mouth.Hetasted like beer, whichIhad never truly cared for—but on him it tasted wonderful.
I took a half step forward, bringing our bodies flush against each other, and ran my hands up his chest and around them to grab on to the back of his shirt—almost as ifIneeded it for stability.
His tongue entered and worked my mouth as though kissing me was the job he was meant to do his whole life.Ihad never been kissed like this before—granted,I’donly kissed a couple of guys.Still,Archercould kiss, andIwas enjoying every moment of it.
Just then, he pulled back, his forehead going to mine as we both took our time catching our breath.
“Damn, woman,” he muttered. “Youreally know how to kiss.”
He thoughtIdid?Iwas letting him have most of the control.Iwas just along for the ride.Atthe same time, his compliment left me feeling emboldened.
“We can do more kissing if you want, but it might be better to take this into my room in case my roommates come home soon,”Itold him.
“Lead the way,Ace.”
I backed up, turning to grab my purse from whereIhad dropped it on the counter, and stuck out my hand to him.Helatched on, andIwalked him back down the hallway to my bedroom.
Mine was the farthest room on the left, right next to the bathroom.Whenwe walked in,Ilet go of his hand briefly to set down my purse and started to lean down to take off my shoes.
“Don’t,” he said as his hand moved behind him to close my door. “Youlook incredible in those shoes.Whetherwe just talk or do other things,Ireallywant you to keep those on.”
He grinned down at me lasciviously, and a tiny dimple popped in his cheek.Thatdimple could make a grown woman say yes to things she couldn’t even imagine.Itwas me—Iwas that woman.
“Okay,”Iwhispered back. “IfIkeep them on, will you kiss me again?”
His smile got even bigger as he walked toward me and slid his arms around my hips, pulling me against him. “Absolutely.”
His mouth descended onto mine, and my brain lost power.Ididn’t know if he kissed me for thirty seconds or thirty minutes.Iwas lost to this world, andIdidn’t care at all.
He walked me over to the bed and sat down on the edge.Thenhe did that thing guys do where he reached over his head and pulled his shirt off from behind.
I stared at his chiseled chest and admired it asIstood in front of him.
“Like what you see,Ace?” he asked teasingly, butIdidn’t care.Notmany men were built like him, soIwasn’t sure ifIwould ever get the chance to openly stare at one like him again.Iwas gonna take my shot whenIhad it.
