Chapter 8
Chapter
Eight
Jayne
“We really need to stop meeting this way,” Bodi quips as we sit there for a moment, catching our collective breath.
“You scared the crap out of me,” I mutter.
“Sorry about that. Your foot was on the edge of the step so I wanted to warn you…I guess it backfired.”
“That it did.” She rubs her hip.
“Are you hurt?” I ask quickly.
“I’m good—I’m more worried about you.” She frowns slightly. “You took the brunt of my fall.”
“I’m fine.” He brushes a stray tendril of hair out of my face. “You sure you’re okay? We landed kind of hard.”
“I landed on you,” I say softly. “You broke my fall, which I really appreciate. You’re quite the gentleman.”
“Is that bad?” he asks curiously, eyes lasered in on mine.
“No. I like it. I don’t meet many these days.”
We’re still looking into each other’s eyes, and I have a feeling he’s going to…oh my gosh. He’s leaning forward. I don’t know what to do except to close my eyes and let it happen. How long has it been since I kissed someone? Close to a year and—
His lips brush mine ever-so-softly. A tiny caress that isn’t impatient or hurried.
Like we’re not sitting on the floor of the library where I’m supposed to be working.
He brings up a hand, putting it on the side of my face as he continues to lightly touch his lips to mine.
No tongue, no urgency, just soft, sensual exploration.
And this is sexier than anything else I’ve ever done.
There’s an intimacy that has nothing to do with sex. It’s hard to explain what I’m feeling because my heart is pounding excitedly, my skin feels alive, and my body is on high alert. He’s barely touched me but I’m intrigued and aroused and maybe a little giddy.
My lips part of their own volition, but he doesn’t take it as an invitation. Instead, he gently brushes his knuckles across my cheek and whispers, “Not here. Not now. I’ll kiss you properly when we’re alone.”
“You really are a gentleman,” I say, focusing on his handsome face.
“Not always, but I try. Now come on, let’s get these books shelved.” He stands up and holds out his hands, helping me to my feet.
“Thank you.” My knees feel shaky, and I don’t know why.
I can’t ever remember a kiss having this effect on me. And it was barely a kiss. Completely chaste.
What is it about Bodi that has me feeling like an innocent virgin all over again? He’s the kind of guy who could make me break all my rules about not having any distractions until I graduate.
“So,” he says, leaning against the shelves as I climb back up on the ladder. “What’s new?”
“Since I last saw you?” I ask drolly. “Not a damn thing…how about you?”
“One of my roommates is Russian,” he says. “We’ve been making him watch trash reality TV to help him learn better English. What’s hilarious is that he’s more caught up in the drama than the language.”
I laugh. “That may be backfiring on you.”
“Pretty much, although I think he’s learning more than he wants to admit. His bigger struggle is reading and writing since the alphabets are completely different.”
“There might be some audiobooks here at the library that could help him with the language, if he’s interested in that kind of thing.”
“That might be good for him. I’ll mention it.”
“If he’s interested, tell him to come in and ask for me and I’ll help him find something that works for him. I don’t know what we have here specifically, but in general, there are tons of options for learning English.”
“His name is Viktor,” he says. “He’s a little…quiet. But I’ll send him in.”
“Great.”
Being together is so easy, which is a refreshing change for me.
I just have to wonder if it’s because of this specific man or because it’s been a while since I dated and I’m lonely. Either way, no matter how much of a sexy distraction he is, I need to keep things casual. My focus is on school and graduation while he’s gearing up to start a new job.
He hands me some of the books that fell, making sure to watch my feet so I don’t do anything else that’s embarrassing. Having him catch me is fun, but falling again might make it look intentional.
Maybe he wouldn’t mind, though. He seemed to get a kick out of catching me, despite how hard we landed. Obviously, since he kissed me, it afforded us a fun opportunity to…get to know each other better.
“Has school started for you?” he asks, interrupting my thoughts as he leans against the large shelf.
I look down and his biceps all but make my mouth water, so I quickly avert my gaze, trying to keep my mind on his question.
“Yup. My internship counts as two classes this semester, and two classes next semester. So, I only have one regular class and it’s been pretty easy so far. I wish school came as easily for my little sister as it does for me.”
“Is she struggling?”
“I think it’s more social than academic. She’s the new kid, you know? And even seven-year-olds can be little assholes. They have cliques. It’s so sad.”
“That sucks. You have to teach her to be a little sassy, like you.”
I chuckle. “No one’s ever called me sassy before. Usually, they call me studious or grumpy.”
“I don’t think you’re grumpy.”
I smile, taking another stack of books from him. “Well, you haven’t spent a lot of time with me yet. Wait until I’m under the gun trying to finish a project or something. Then it’ll be all one-word answers and scowling.”
“Noted. I’ll be prepared with snacks.” He seems more amused than anything else, which is something else I like about him.
He’s thoughtful too.
I don’t know where guys like him have been all my life.
“All done.” I climb back down the ladder and dust off my hands since I don’t think anyone has cleaned that shelf since the library opened two years ago.
“What’s next?”
“Well, I have to find something work-related to do. What about you? Have any plans the rest of the weekend?”
“No, but Monday I have a work thing. I was thinking maybe we could go to dinner tonight. Would that work for you?”
I nod.
He’s officially asking me out on a real date—dinner.
Yay!
I feel like a giddy teenager, but I manage to contain my excitement.
“That sounds perfect. My dad is having friends over to the house on Monday so I’m expected to make an appearance.” I roll my eyes. “I get off at five today, though, if you want to just pick me up here, I’ll be ready to go.”
“Sure.”
“Casual or dressy?” I ask. “I’ll need to know what to wear.”
“Let’s go with casual,” he says after a moment. “I don’t really know anywhere around here, so I’m going to be scanning the internet to find us somewhere that isn’t too far but has good food. Anything you don’t eat?”
I shrug. “Not really. Sushi is probably my least favorite, but otherwise, I’ll eat almost anything.”
“Good to know. Okay, I’ll let you get back to work, and I’ll text you once I figure out where we’re going.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” I say softly.
“Me too.” He leans over and brushes his lips across my cheek.
Be still, my fucking heart.