Highlander, a shitty bar I would go to with friends. Aiden had just taken off again. The burgers were great, but the booze was doing nothing for my mood. My spirits soared when I heard his deep voice in my ear. “A penny for your thoughts.”
Smiling, I reply as I have since that day, “A penny would be too much.”
“No really, what are you thinking about?” Eli presses, twisting his neck slightly to be more in front of me.
“Why?” I’m not sure if I’m being coy on purpose, but he seems to really want to know. He always really wants to know.
“Because you have such a peaceful look on your face, you must be lost in a happy thought.” He turns me around to face him as he says it.
“I was just thinking of the night I ran into you at the Highlander. I remember feeling so happy to see you.” I answer, getting lost in those gorgeous cobalt eyes staring back intently.
A slow smile spreads across Eli’s face. “Really? That’s what you were thinking about?”
“Yeah, stupid huh?” I’m not quite so sure this is the time for nostalgia—or maybe it’s just what I need to take my mind off of my impending appointment with an orange jumpsuit.
“I don’t think it’s stupid.” Eli seems almost offended. “What’s stupid is how many nights I waited there hoping you would walk through the door.”
“What?”
“Shay, I was supposed to go to law school at Stanford, but when I heard that you were at SCAD I decided to go to Emory instead. Then went to all the places the cool kids went. I knew that I would eventually run into you.” Eli releases my hand, turning away from me in embarrassment.
“Eli, why didn’t you just call me?” You could knock me over with a breath. We started seeing each other a few weeks after that.
“Because I didn’t know what to say.” He continued to evade my eyes.
“So wait a minute,” his words are starting to sink in heavily, “you gave up Stanford to go to Emory so you could maybe run into me?”
He didn’t respond, only looks back at me with a look of yearning. I walk over to him and throw my arms around him. “That is by far the dumbest thing anyone has ever done.” It dawns on me that Eli didn’t go to Brown University for undergrad because I wasn’t done in high school, and this realization was just too much. Tears well up in the corners of my eyes, and I pull back from our hug to see his raised brows topping off his befuddled expression. “And the sweetest thing any man has ever done for a woman.”
I find myself trapped in the intensity of his gaze. My hands slide around his neck. Reaching up on my tiptoes I meet his lips with a soft, gentle kiss, let it linger. All of my senses come to life. His hands move to my waist, tugging me closer into him as if to make me aware of the growth of his monument to manhood. And oh my, is it growing.
His heart is beating so hard it’s audible. I feel in his slow, aching kiss that he is burning inside for me. Our kiss grows into something deeper, more passionate. A dam of emotion bursts in me, forcing me to realize how much I’ve missed him in all of his imperfect glory.
My hands wander wildly down his neck, then chest. I unbutton his shirt, one button at a time, pressing my hand against his skin to know his heart is mine. He brings his hand up to mine, tangling our fingers. He pulls back breathless, to look into my eyes, searching for something in them.
“Shay,” he whispers, barely audible.
Caught in his gaze, I bite down on my bottom lip. I don’t want him to stop. “Don’t say anything sensible right now.” I just want him to take me. Throw all caution to the wind, let me touch him and love him like we are the only two people in the world. Being this close to Eli has awakened something that has long been dormant. A rushing heat rakes over me in the wake of his hungry gaze.
“We should–” He stops mid-sentence as his expression changes from serious to mischievous in a split second.
I answer
Smiling, I reply as I have since that day, “A penny would be too much.”
“No really, what are you thinking about?” Eli presses, twisting his neck slightly to be more in front of me.
“Why?” I’m not sure if I’m being coy on purpose, but he seems to really want to know. He always really wants to know.
“Because you have such a peaceful look on your face, you must be lost in a happy thought.” He turns me around to face him as he says it.
“I was just thinking of the night I ran into you at the Highlander. I remember feeling so happy to see you.” I answer, getting lost in those gorgeous cobalt eyes staring back intently.
A slow smile spreads across Eli’s face. “Really? That’s what you were thinking about?”
“Yeah, stupid huh?” I’m not quite so sure this is the time for nostalgia—or maybe it’s just what I need to take my mind off of my impending appointment with an orange jumpsuit.
“I don’t think it’s stupid.” Eli seems almost offended. “What’s stupid is how many nights I waited there hoping you would walk through the door.”
“What?”
“Shay, I was supposed to go to law school at Stanford, but when I heard that you were at SCAD I decided to go to Emory instead. Then went to all the places the cool kids went. I knew that I would eventually run into you.” Eli releases my hand, turning away from me in embarrassment.
“Eli, why didn’t you just call me?” You could knock me over with a breath. We started seeing each other a few weeks after that.
“Because I didn’t know what to say.” He continued to evade my eyes.
“So wait a minute,” his words are starting to sink in heavily, “you gave up Stanford to go to Emory so you could maybe run into me?”
He didn’t respond, only looks back at me with a look of yearning. I walk over to him and throw my arms around him. “That is by far the dumbest thing anyone has ever done.” It dawns on me that Eli didn’t go to Brown University for undergrad because I wasn’t done in high school, and this realization was just too much. Tears well up in the corners of my eyes, and I pull back from our hug to see his raised brows topping off his befuddled expression. “And the sweetest thing any man has ever done for a woman.”
I find myself trapped in the intensity of his gaze. My hands slide around his neck. Reaching up on my tiptoes I meet his lips with a soft, gentle kiss, let it linger. All of my senses come to life. His hands move to my waist, tugging me closer into him as if to make me aware of the growth of his monument to manhood. And oh my, is it growing.
His heart is beating so hard it’s audible. I feel in his slow, aching kiss that he is burning inside for me. Our kiss grows into something deeper, more passionate. A dam of emotion bursts in me, forcing me to realize how much I’ve missed him in all of his imperfect glory.
My hands wander wildly down his neck, then chest. I unbutton his shirt, one button at a time, pressing my hand against his skin to know his heart is mine. He brings his hand up to mine, tangling our fingers. He pulls back breathless, to look into my eyes, searching for something in them.
“Shay,” he whispers, barely audible.
Caught in his gaze, I bite down on my bottom lip. I don’t want him to stop. “Don’t say anything sensible right now.” I just want him to take me. Throw all caution to the wind, let me touch him and love him like we are the only two people in the world. Being this close to Eli has awakened something that has long been dormant. A rushing heat rakes over me in the wake of his hungry gaze.
“We should–” He stops mid-sentence as his expression changes from serious to mischievous in a split second.
I answer
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