9. Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Lilly
“I ’ll talk to you later,” Jamison said. He gave me a smile, which set my girlie parts to tingling, and followed Darcie down the front walk.
I shut the door behind them and leaned heavily against it. My nerves were still on edge. That kiss. His lips. I closed my eyes. I had this need to ingrain the feeling of his lips on mine in my brain. You would think that after all these years, I’d be able to move on, find someone else to obsess over, to want.
“Mommy, can you read me a story before I go to bed?” Madeline asked.
I sighed and opened my eyes, coming back to the present. “Of course, squirt. Go get ready for bed, pick out a book, and I’ll be right there.”
Madeline ran off, and I stared after her. I touched my fingers to my mouth. I swear I could still feel Jamison’s warm lips on mine.
Jamison’s lips on mine—What? This was crazy. I felt a pull between us, even at the gym tonight. It was like he was hanging on my every word. Rose kept giving me a look, but I ignored her.
God, she would die if I told her what happened. Hell, I don’t even know what just happened. Did Jamison really kiss me? I lifted my fingers and brushed them against my lips again and fell back against the door. Jamison kissed me!
It was a perfect, soft, sweet, and sensual kiss wrapped up in a perfect Jamison package. Yes, it was brief because the girls interrupted us, but that made it so much better.
I froze. “I was just kissed by Jamison,” I told the empty house. My pulse raced. God, it was real. My hands came to my face, and I squealed into them.
Damn, woman, you’re acting like a high school girl kissed by the captain of the football team whom you had been crushing on for years.
Oh, well, it’s because you were just kissed by the captain of the football team whom you’ve been crushing on for years.
I grabbed my purse from the chair I’d placed it on and took the stairs two at a time to read my daughter a book and get her to bed.
To say I wasn’t into Goodnight, Farm Animals, the book we’ve read since we’ve been here, is an understatement. Madeline called me out on my lackluster animal sounds multiple times until she decided it was better to go ahead and just go to sleep.
I kissed her good night and went into my room and dialed Rose. I hoped it wasn’t too late, but I thought I would explode if I didn’t share what happened.
“Holy shit, Rose. I’ve got to talk to you. Do you have a minute?” I gushed as soon as she said hello.
“Of course. Hold on,” she spoke in a hushed voice.
I heard her close a door. “I just put Lena down.” Her voice was at a normal level. “What’s up? Is everything okay? You sound a little flustered.”
“Flustered?” I paced back and forth across my bedroom floor. “Girl, I’m more than flustered. Holy shit. You’ll never believe what the hell just happened to me.”
“I hope nothing bad. You don’t usually curse unless you’re mad or upset.”
“I’m not upset. I’m just . . .” I huffed out a breath. I had to calm my pulse and heart rate. “Give me a minute.” I closed my eyes and did some deep-meditation breathing to relax. I used to do that when Anthony upset me, but now it has another use.
“You’re scaring me,” Rose said.
“Okay, sorry. I’m just going to tell you. God, I feel like a college girl again.”
“And you’re acting like one. What the heck? Did you and Jamison give in to the hot sexual tension that hung between you two tonight and make out in the laundry room or something?”
This was why she was my best friend. It was like she could sense everything that happened to me. It may not have been the first time I’d kissed Jamison, but of course, she didn’t know our history. I’d never told her about it before—I never told anyone.
“Good gosh, Lilly. Did you?” Her voice went up an octave. “Oh, my God. You did. Tell me everything.”
I sat back against my pillows before I spoke. “Maddy wanted to show Darcie something in her room, so Jamison came in, and I offered him a water. I was leaning against the counter; he was leaning against the bar. Our eyes locked, and he touched my hair, then brushed his thumb against my cheek, then he kissed me.” I relived the whole thing again. The feel of his lips against mine. The warmth of them. How my heart fluttered madly when our lips touched then felt empty when it ended.
I continued, “It was amazing and quick and sweet and surprising and . . .” I stopped to breathe and thought over my words. “Rose, I don’t know why. I don’t know how.”
“Kristy and I knew there was something between you two at the pub, and tonight at gymnastics, I could feel the electricity bounce between you.”
“Oh, that’s not good. What if others did also?”
Rose laughed. “I’m sure they did. You two were hard to miss. But, so what? You’re both adults and both single. You’re free to do what you want and like whomever you wish.”
She was right. But it was Jamison. “What was he thinking? What was I thinking? I’m so confused.” My mind needed to calm down. It was going a mile a minute.
“Relax. Hold on.” Rose must have put her hand over her phone. I could hear a muffled conversation and Nolan’s voice asking what was wrong. Rose said nothing, but of course, he knew it wasn’t true. “Sorry about that,” she said. “Nolan wanted to know what all the excitement was.”
“Don’t you dare say a word.” I hissed. “This is going to be awkward enough without the entire town hearing about it.” News in Orlinda Valley spread faster than a forest fire over dry grass in the summer.
“Well, he kissed you. He must feel something. I guess you’ll find out tomorrow when you go to his house.”
My eyes popped. “Shit. I’m going to his house tomorrow.” My heart, which had just calmed down, skipped right back into an off rhythm.
Rose giggled. “You are. What time do you need to be there?”
“Ten.”
“I’d say I’d fix us lunch when you’re finished, but who knows how long you’ll be.” She laughed again. “Let’s grab coffee after we drop off the girls at Mother’s Day Out tomorrow and talk before you have to go.”
“That sounds good. I might need some encouragement.”
“Well, then you’ll have it.”
“Great. See you tomorrow,” I said, but I don’t know if she heard because the line died. I fell back onto my bed. What the hell was I going to do? How would I act when I saw him?
My mind was going over every possible scenario. I doubted I’d ever get to sleep.