Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 35982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
“Let’s get you a wetsuit and a board. You can leave your wallet and keys in my apartment if you want. That way you don’t have to fuss with a locker and paperwork.”
“Sounds good.”
“C’mon.” Cal patted my shoulder as he eased by me.
I followed him to his apartment and set my coffee mug on the counter next to his. He said something about grabbing the sunscreen in his bedroom and meeting me downstairs.
And somewhere in this ho-hum cordial dance, I realized my window of opportunity was closing. A morning spent second-guessing my every move sounded like hell. It was better to get any awkward discussions out of the way once and for all. If he wasn’t going to address the elephant in the room, I would.
“Wait.” I grabbed Cal’s wrist before he walked away. “Are we going to talk about last night, or are we going to pretend it didn’t happen? Either way is cool by me. Just curious. Okay, that’s a lie. I’d prefer to get this conversation over with. This is already weird enough as it is.”
Cal didn’t shake me off or break eye contact. His gaze was focused and steady, without a trace of agitation or discomfort. I got the feeling he was choosing his words carefully and maybe trying to find a nice way to tell me not to get any ideas. After all, a kiss was just a kiss. And a drunken kiss in the dark wasn’t worth mentioning.
Except neither of us had been drunk last night. I remembered everything, I mused, staring at his mouth.
Cal rubbed his scruffy jaw thoughtfully. “We can talk now.”
“Okay, cool. You start.”
He chuckled and pointed at his chest. “Why me?”
“ ’Cause you kissed me. And you’re supposed to be straight. So, either that kiss was meant to satisfy a bi-curious moment, or maybe you were evening out the score so I wouldn’t feel weird about taking another surf lesson. Or you were punishing me for—”
“Punishing you?” Cal intercepted.
“Yeah, for being an idiot.”
“Wow. That’s kind of a stretch,” he huffed. “You’re overthinking this, big-time.”
“I excel at overthinking. If overthinking were an Olympic sport, I’d hold the world record in every category possible.” I paced to the window and back, pushing my fingers through my hair. “What am I gonna have for breakfast? I dunno, let me overthink this. Why did the Uber driver give me a funny look last night? I probably had something in my teeth. But I should overthink it, just in case.”
Cal busted up laughing. “You’re kind of funny.”
“I am. I’m fucking hysterical. Usually by accident. I’m the guy who waltzes into a club giving high fives and trips the second I get on the dance floor—or better yet, hits on a guy whose boyfriend suddenly appears and turns out to be a former professional linebacker. Or the guy who—”
He held up his hand, his eyes creased with ready humor. “I get it. You’re a train wreck.”
I gave a self-deprecating sigh. “That part started when I moved to SoCal, though. I used to be much smoother.”
“So, this is California’s fault?”
“Hell, yes. But I love it here, so I’m gonna have to figure out how to cope with being unintentionally entertaining until I find my groove again.”
Cal smiled. “You’re used to being number one, huh?”
“Something like that. Let’s just say, I’m used to knowing what I’m doing. And I don’t really know why I’m here.”
He studied me for a moment, then stepped closer. “You already told me why you’re here. You wanted to know if I meant to kiss you and if so…why.”
“Oh, yeah…I am very curious about that.” I inclined my head and waggled my fingers meaningfully. “Lay it on me. I need to process this and ideally, stop crushing on you.”
“You have a crush on me?” he asked incredulously, pointing at his toned chest.
“Of course, I do. You’re hot. No, you’re not just hot…you’re sexy. The kind of sexy that doesn’t try too hard or—”
Cal grabbed my arm and crashed his mouth over mine.
He’d caught me off guard for the second time in less than twenty-four hours, but I was a quick study. I inched back slightly, softening the contact as I licked his lips. Cal got the message. He pushed inside, twisting my tongue around his.
Look, I might have been a bit of a head case and I admit, my initial seafaring lip-lock hadn’t gone well, but kissing was one of my favorite things. And not to brag, but I was very good at it. It didn’t matter if he was trying to prove something to himself or just shut me up. I was sharper than I’d been last night and determined to make this kiss count.
I set my hands on Cal’s hips, where the rubbery wetsuit met skin, tilting my chin to deepen the connection. Fuck, he tasted good…like coffee and strawberries. And he was better at kissing a man than he’d probably counted on. He wasn’t hesitant or skittish. He seemed to gain confidence with every nip, stroke, and languid glide of his tongue. Before I knew it, he took over completely.