over to deliver his prize.
She had a split-second view of his grin fading to surprise, and then there was only the kiss. The silk of his lips and the light touch of his hand closing over her back. The warmth of him, the taste of something so good, she needed more.
His mouth fit exactly over hers, and the taste was of a place where the mountains meet the sea. She slid her tongue along his lips, then dipped inside, and everything in her soared. His hand slid along her waist, and she nestled closer, driven by a rising wave of need. It was like they’d never left off. Like everything a soul needed for well-being was in that kiss. Warmth and honesty and a nurturing touch that—
Something on the rooftop fluttered and chirped, and Cara pulled back with a sharp inhale. Jesus, was that her, giving him mouth-to-mouth?
It was. And she wanted more. Lots more. Now.
But there were six long years between that kiss and the one that came before it, and all of a sudden she got cold feet.
His eyes flashed and his lips quirked, but he didn’t say anything. Just cupped her ribs in his big hands and waited.
“Tobin, we need to talk.”
The corners of his eyes drooped. “We’ve talked enough.”
“I mean, about back then. About what happened.”
And poof, the little magic bubble that had formed around them popped. The rain forest was back, and all its citizens were shaking their heads in disappointment.
She wanted to reel back the words and say something else — better yet, do something else, like fall into another kiss, but it was too late. The silence that ticked by took forever doing so, stretching and pulling until she wanted to hide under the sheet.
When Tobin spoke again, his voice was low and gravelly. “I did not touch that woman that night.”
Chapter Ten
“I know,” she whispered.
“You know?”
She nodded to the ceiling because she still couldn’t meet his eyes. “Your brother and Meredith told me.”
The quieter he got, the louder her heart thumped.
“They told you.” He said it with a scary lack of intonation.
She nodded, remembering that awful feeling when they had. That feeling of every drop of hope draining out of her. Appalled at how quickly she’d jumped to the wrong conclusion.
“They told you the only reason I left that stupid stag party with that girl was to get her home safely,” he went on.
Every muscle in her body was stiff, and she barely dipped her chin. “They said that two drunk guys were getting ready to take that woman who knows where. That she was drunk, too, and barely conscious. If you hadn’t stepped in, anything could have happened.”
The air moved between them as he shook his head. “That girl was barely over drinking age, if she cleared it at all.”
If only she’d gotten the full story right away. But all she heard was that Tobin had taken a drunk girl to her place and disappeared inside.
“The minute I got her to her place, she threw up,” he muttered. “You know how long it took to clean myself up? To clean her up enough that she wouldn’t choke on it?”
Long enough to make it look like something else entirely. She closed her eyes at the familiar wave of shame. God, if only she hadn’t jumped to her own conclusion, like everyone else.
“That’s all I did.” He didn’t have a hand over his heart, but he didn’t need one. The crack in his voice was promise enough.
“I know,” she said, but it barely came out above the chorus of crickets outside.
It had taken Meredith and Seth a week to track down the girl, her roommate, and the neighbor, and another two weeks to set the story straight. Every day of it, an eternity of tears and pain, then shame.
Tobin rolled to face her, his head propped on a hand, his elbow on the mattress, so she couldn’t avoid his eyes. “If you know I didn’t do it, why are you still mad at me?”
She wanted to jump up and insist she wasn’t mad, but she was. Mad
She had a split-second view of his grin fading to surprise, and then there was only the kiss. The silk of his lips and the light touch of his hand closing over her back. The warmth of him, the taste of something so good, she needed more.
His mouth fit exactly over hers, and the taste was of a place where the mountains meet the sea. She slid her tongue along his lips, then dipped inside, and everything in her soared. His hand slid along her waist, and she nestled closer, driven by a rising wave of need. It was like they’d never left off. Like everything a soul needed for well-being was in that kiss. Warmth and honesty and a nurturing touch that—
Something on the rooftop fluttered and chirped, and Cara pulled back with a sharp inhale. Jesus, was that her, giving him mouth-to-mouth?
It was. And she wanted more. Lots more. Now.
But there were six long years between that kiss and the one that came before it, and all of a sudden she got cold feet.
His eyes flashed and his lips quirked, but he didn’t say anything. Just cupped her ribs in his big hands and waited.
“Tobin, we need to talk.”
The corners of his eyes drooped. “We’ve talked enough.”
“I mean, about back then. About what happened.”
And poof, the little magic bubble that had formed around them popped. The rain forest was back, and all its citizens were shaking their heads in disappointment.
She wanted to reel back the words and say something else — better yet, do something else, like fall into another kiss, but it was too late. The silence that ticked by took forever doing so, stretching and pulling until she wanted to hide under the sheet.
When Tobin spoke again, his voice was low and gravelly. “I did not touch that woman that night.”
Chapter Ten
“I know,” she whispered.
“You know?”
She nodded to the ceiling because she still couldn’t meet his eyes. “Your brother and Meredith told me.”
The quieter he got, the louder her heart thumped.
“They told you.” He said it with a scary lack of intonation.
She nodded, remembering that awful feeling when they had. That feeling of every drop of hope draining out of her. Appalled at how quickly she’d jumped to the wrong conclusion.
“They told you the only reason I left that stupid stag party with that girl was to get her home safely,” he went on.
Every muscle in her body was stiff, and she barely dipped her chin. “They said that two drunk guys were getting ready to take that woman who knows where. That she was drunk, too, and barely conscious. If you hadn’t stepped in, anything could have happened.”
The air moved between them as he shook his head. “That girl was barely over drinking age, if she cleared it at all.”
If only she’d gotten the full story right away. But all she heard was that Tobin had taken a drunk girl to her place and disappeared inside.
“The minute I got her to her place, she threw up,” he muttered. “You know how long it took to clean myself up? To clean her up enough that she wouldn’t choke on it?”
Long enough to make it look like something else entirely. She closed her eyes at the familiar wave of shame. God, if only she hadn’t jumped to her own conclusion, like everyone else.
“That’s all I did.” He didn’t have a hand over his heart, but he didn’t need one. The crack in his voice was promise enough.
“I know,” she said, but it barely came out above the chorus of crickets outside.
It had taken Meredith and Seth a week to track down the girl, her roommate, and the neighbor, and another two weeks to set the story straight. Every day of it, an eternity of tears and pain, then shame.
Tobin rolled to face her, his head propped on a hand, his elbow on the mattress, so she couldn’t avoid his eyes. “If you know I didn’t do it, why are you still mad at me?”
She wanted to jump up and insist she wasn’t mad, but she was. Mad
Similar Books
