Chapter 22
Kyran
Fuck, this can't be good.
I wasn't sure that I'd allow myself the luxury of being so obvious, because honestly, it's hard not to be when the person who's been on the other side of the phone that I'd spent hours with is now standing right in front of me.
I really didn't want to seem too forward too fast, but she caught me red-handed.
I was staring. At her body, her ass, the way she lit up when she walked into my apartment.
But I was also listening. I could hear the way her little nervous breaths escaped her lips and it made me anxious. Maybe for her approval or her rejection? I don't know. But I didn't expect her to turn around and catch me eying her down before stomping over and pulling my phone from my pocket.
God, having her that close makes my heart race. Can a man's heart race? Because mine does. Every single fucking time I look at her, it races.
"What are you waiting for?" she asks as she puts her hands on her hips and smiles that beautiful smile of hers. Her pink lips pout just enough to catch the air in my lungs from exhaling a full breath and her eyes look wildly entertained as she waits for me to take an actual picture of her.
"You're serious?" I ask, and she nods without hesitation.
I feel like I should say something. Sorry for ogling you, but fuck, you're pretty. Anything. But nothing comes as I open the camera app to my phone and position the screen over her.
She poses, pressing her palm over her lips and closes her eyes as she blows a kiss to the camera. I snap the picture. Then she moves to a new position, holding up a peace sign by her face while sticking her tongue out, eyes still closed. I snap again.
For the next pose, she opens her eyes, places her hands behind her back and smiles that pretty fucking smile she has. It's pure and genuine. And it knocks the air out of my lungs. I snap the photo and then put my phone down.
"There," she says as she wanders over to the barstool at kitchen island. "Now you have something to remember me by." She pulls herself up on the seat and spins around to face me.
I don't know how to react or what to say.
What she just did renders me speechless, shocked, and quite frankly .
. . obsessed. I've known Weslyn to have this spunky side to her, maybe a little spontaneity even.
But what I just witnessed was more than that.
It was playful and sarcastic and confident beyond belief.
Maybe she's always carried those traits and it's hard to decipher via text messages and even the multiple FaceTime dates we've had.
I love seeing her be herself and break out of that shell she's been fond to crawl into. And if there's one thing I now know that I expect out of her being here, it's that I want more of that.
Still, even though she didn't show any offense to the fact that I was eying her down—unbeknownst to her, inappropriately—I take the time to apologize.
"I didn't mean to invade your space like that. But I'll admit, it's very hard to keep my eyes off you, Weslyn," I admit as I head for the fridge to grab a beer.
"I know. I'll confess, I've caught myself staring at you too. It doesn't seem real," her tone is soft as she speaks, a step down from the vibrant display she put on for me moments ago but not any less confident in her words.
I let a silent response fill the space between us as she watches me. I turn to ask her if she wants something to drink, not really sure what the plans are for the night ahead, but she stops me by jumping off the stool and holding her hand out.
"Wait," she presses her palm to the beer in my hand and I have to avoid the wild look I want to give her. "You think maybe you can save this for later?" I don't move as I let her grab the bottle out of my hand and she reaches behind me to put it back where I got it from.
"I want to go see a movie. There's that scary one that's supposed to be really good. It just came out yesterday and-"
"Done," I respond, stopping her from rambling any further. Not that I don’t love listening to her talk, but one of the things I've learned about her is that she likes to ramble sometimes when she's on the verge of overthinking. It's cute, but I don't want her to retreat.
"Really?" she asks, her eyes brightening and her pink cheeks glowing against her skin.
"Yes. Anything you want. If it's a movie you want, then done," I say to her not realizing that I've reached out to brush her hair behind her ear. But I do and she closes her eyes for a moment while seemingly holding her breath.
The gesture feels natural for me to do, and she doesn't stop me from finishing it out as my fingers brush behind her ears; the softness of her hair brushes against my skin. When I pull back, she opens her eyes up at me, her lashes covering them a bit and I realize just how intimate the notion is.
"Sorry, I just-" Couldn't help myself, is what I was going to say before she cuts me off.
"No, don't be." She reaches out to touch my forearm in an act of reassurance and I appreciate her approval.
Quite frankly, I don't hesitate with her, and I really could care less to apologize for my actions because I mean every one of them.
But with her, I don't want to overstep. I still don't know what she's comfortable with entirely so I drink in every ounce of the approval she gives me, noting the way she responds so that I can use it all later.
Both of us turn our attention to the sound of a phone chiming next to us. I recognize it as mine and I reluctantly leave to go check it. While I did move my schedule around to have these days solely dedicated to Weslyn, I might still have a needy client reach out. But in all honesty, they can wait.
I decide to not give up even a second of my time with her to see who the text is from and instead I click onto the movie theater website.
"Anyone important?" I look up to see that she's apprehensive about asking, but it's the slight sense of worry I detect in her tone that has me needing to make something clear.
I put the phone down for a brief second and beckon her to me. "Come here," I say and she doesn't think twice about following my direction.
She walks a few feet to meet me at the other side of the island where she allows me to grab her hand and pull her in.
"I know what you're thinking," I tell her. "I heard it in your voice." I take the risk to pull her chin up, pinching it gently between my fingers before looking down into her beautiful eyes.
"Whatever you're thinking, don't. Regardless of what either of us expects from this time together, I want you to know that there is not and hasn't been anyone else." I make sure my words hold their strength in the truth I'm giving her; I don't want her to doubt it for a second.
And she keeps me on my toes by smirking while I still grip her chin, lowering her voice a smidge.
"Are you assuming me to be jealous of a text message, Kyran?" Her tone is devious and so is the sparkle in her eyes.
God, the feral need to lean down and kiss her is an idea running rampant in my mind and I have to let go of her entirely to not follow it through.
"I would be," I admit so as to give her an idea of just how serious I am about the time we're spending together, no matter the outcome.
And I'm not anywhere near ashamed to have confessed it to her; I would be jealous if I had any suspicion that she was texting another person in the same capacity as me.
The tension between us expands, not quite getting to the point where it's potent enough for detonation, but I can feel it climbing to that level with every second we spend near each other.
I have to take a step back and reach for my phone to proceed with the movie tickets in order to not give in to the temptation I am craving.
I won't make the first move. I can't. Not unless I know it's what she truly wants.
"Are you good to go in an hour?" I ask her as I hover over the option for the five o'clock showing.
I notice how her eyes flutter just enough when she sucks in a little breath of air before answering me. "Sounds good to me," she turns around on her heel to head for her suitcase. "Mind if I borrow the shower?" she asks and something in me freezes.
I didn't even think much about her needing to use my shower. While there are two bedrooms in my apartment, there's only one bathroom with a shower, the other is just a half bath.
I watch as she pulls at her leggings, giving me a slight look of disgust before she picks up her bag. "Gross airport clothes," she defends, and I have to swallow the lump building in my throat before answering her.
"Of course. My room's back that way if you want to meet me there. I'm just gonna finish buying these tickets," I tell her as I nod her in the direction of my room, and he smiles sweetly at me before disappearing down the hall.
A few minutes later, I head down toward my room. I hear the shower running in the distance which I guess doesn't bother me. I only wanted to make sure she had everything she needed and…
Wait, the towels.
Unless she found one on her way in, there's no towel in the bathroom for her. I don't have a lot of storage space in the bathroom, so I keep my towels in the built-in cabinets that are located in my closet, which is through the bathroom.
I knock on the door to see if she can hear me, but she doesn't respond so I shout her name through the wood.
"Weslyn!" I call out, and I still don't hear anything. I decide it's not that big of a deal, so I retreat to just let her have her shower but right as I turn, the door opens.
"Kyran?" she questions and I have to hold myself accountable, forcing myself to stay still when I answer her, and not to turn around.
"Hey, sorry," I start. "I just wanted to make sure you found the towels okay."
I hear her let out a slight sigh of disappointment. "No, I looked, and I didn't see any. I was actually just coming to ask."
My heart thuds against my chest. "There's a cabinet in my closet. The towels are located in the second drawer." I instruct, still holding myself to the control I have to not turn to look at her.
"I'll be honest, I thought about going that route, but I really don't feel comfortable just opening up all your drawers."
I listen to the crack in her voice, it's not one of fear or sadness, but again, that nervous emotion takes over.
"Are you dressed?" I ask, and though the water is still spraying in the background, it seems like all the noise has drowned out while I wait for her answer.
"No," she says, and I can't help the way my body reacts. Specifically, my dick. "Let me just put my clothes back on."
"No," I say. "Just, jump in the shower and I can get into my closet.
" I don't know why I offer this. I should have just let her get dressed so that I can get in and out without a chance of anything inappropriate.
But I hear her feet pad away and then I hear the glass door to the shower open and shut.
I turn to see the steam filter out of the open door from the hot water.
I take a deep breath, and head in. I grab a towel from the top of the folds out of the drawer and hesitantly turn around.
My shower doors are a frosted glass, so hardly anything can be seen visibly through, but as I turn around to leave the towel for her, I hear her humming and I can't help but look.
I see the outline of her body; I hate myself for wanting to watch her movements in the shower.
It's a violation and I shouldn't be invading her privacy like this once more.
I mentally berate myself and force my feet to move forward knowing that I have to get closer to the shower to drop the towel for her.
"Hey, Wes, I'm just gonna leave the towel right here by the sink for you," I say as I layer it over the counter top.
I don't hear a response, and I don't wait to see if she'll answer me, needing to get the hell out of that bathroom before any part of me thinks a second more about what she'd look like naked.
Because that thought does manifest for a moment. Just a fleeting moment.
I hate that my mind went there but I can't blame myself for having an attraction to someone as beautiful as Weslyn is. And not only that, but she is literally naked in my shower.
But instead of letting those thoughts fester any further, I just head back out into the kitchen and wait for her to be ready for our movie date.