outside.
Crap, oh, crap! I thought to myself as I raced to the closet. I threw open the door and my eyes were scanning the hangers wildly when a crazy, very un-Cara-like thought hit me. I shook my head, as though to dismiss it, but it came floating back.
"No, I couldn't…" I muttered aloud to the empty room. It was pure insanity, and so unlike me. But it would settle the question once and for all as to whether Kevin expected more from tonight than I'd allowed myself to believe.
Once I'd decided to go for it, I took a deep breath, summoned all my courage, and made my way to the door before I could change my mind. This is stupid , I scolded myself. What if it's a stranger ?
But I knew no one but Kevin was outside, the same way I knew that I wanted to see for myself how he'd react. He'd just begun to knock again when I turned the knob and opened the door. My pulse was beating a rapid tattoo in my throat as I waited to see what he'd say. I knew exactly what he'd see; my long, blonde hair was dripping, and water was beading on my bare arms. The towel I'd wrapped around me didn't cover much. It barely concealed my breasts and stopped a few inches above the knee, leaving a nice view of my legs.
I eased the front door open, my heart catching in my throat at the first glimpse of him. "Hello," I said, quickly pressing my lips together to keep from smiling.
"Hi. Do you always answer your door in a towel?"
My cheeks flushed at the admonishment I could hear in his voice. "Oh, well, I—"
"You shouldn't make a habit of it," he advised, pushing me back away from the door with gentle hands before striding into the apartment and closing the door behind him. "The idea of some guy lurking in the hallway seeing you like that… I gotta admit, I don't like it much."
My skin tingled as his eyes ran over the length of my body. I was used to men looking at me, sure, but with Kevin it was different. He looked me in the eye and still made me feel like I was the only woman in the room. "You don't?"
"Of course not." He smiled softly. "The minute some Joe Blow gets a glimpse of those gorgeous legs of yours, he's going to forget everything but his own name. Now, you don't want to be responsible for that, do you? Think of all the problems it could cause."
The look he was giving me was both playful and stern, and my tummy knotted up pleasantly. "I guess not," I admitted with a little giggle.
"Now, we did say five, didn't we?"
"Yes. I'm sorry," I dropped my eyes, suddenly bashful. "I dozed off."
Kevin nodded, understanding as always. "If you go ahead and get changed, I bet we can still make our reservation."
I made my way to the bedroom with mixed feelings. On the one hand, he'd proven himself to be the gentleman I was so sure he was, and on the other, part of me wished he'd stripped that towel from my body and thrown it to the four corners of the world while ravishing me with his full, pouty mouth. The thought was enough to make me blush so hotly I couldn't cover it up with any amount of powder.
When I made my way back to the living room, dressed modestly in a pair of hip-hugger jeans and a light pink blouse, Kevin was still standing. "You should have made yourself at home," I said.
"I didn't think you'd be long." He grinned at me, his expression playful once more. "You look cute."
"Ouch." I responded with a wince before I had time to think better of it.
"What? Did I say something wrong?"
"It's nothing." I giggled. "Just… girls don't generally appreciate being called 'cute'. Unless it's by their sister," I added.
"Do you have a sister?"
"No," I admitted with another laugh. "I'm an only child."
"Ah." The way he said it, so knowingly and full of hidden meaning, made me furrow my brow.
"Ah, what?" I asked.
Kevin smiled sheepishly, as though he'd just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Nothing, just that it explains some things about you."
I knew the things most often said about only children were that we were selfish,
Crap, oh, crap! I thought to myself as I raced to the closet. I threw open the door and my eyes were scanning the hangers wildly when a crazy, very un-Cara-like thought hit me. I shook my head, as though to dismiss it, but it came floating back.
"No, I couldn't…" I muttered aloud to the empty room. It was pure insanity, and so unlike me. But it would settle the question once and for all as to whether Kevin expected more from tonight than I'd allowed myself to believe.
Once I'd decided to go for it, I took a deep breath, summoned all my courage, and made my way to the door before I could change my mind. This is stupid , I scolded myself. What if it's a stranger ?
But I knew no one but Kevin was outside, the same way I knew that I wanted to see for myself how he'd react. He'd just begun to knock again when I turned the knob and opened the door. My pulse was beating a rapid tattoo in my throat as I waited to see what he'd say. I knew exactly what he'd see; my long, blonde hair was dripping, and water was beading on my bare arms. The towel I'd wrapped around me didn't cover much. It barely concealed my breasts and stopped a few inches above the knee, leaving a nice view of my legs.
I eased the front door open, my heart catching in my throat at the first glimpse of him. "Hello," I said, quickly pressing my lips together to keep from smiling.
"Hi. Do you always answer your door in a towel?"
My cheeks flushed at the admonishment I could hear in his voice. "Oh, well, I—"
"You shouldn't make a habit of it," he advised, pushing me back away from the door with gentle hands before striding into the apartment and closing the door behind him. "The idea of some guy lurking in the hallway seeing you like that… I gotta admit, I don't like it much."
My skin tingled as his eyes ran over the length of my body. I was used to men looking at me, sure, but with Kevin it was different. He looked me in the eye and still made me feel like I was the only woman in the room. "You don't?"
"Of course not." He smiled softly. "The minute some Joe Blow gets a glimpse of those gorgeous legs of yours, he's going to forget everything but his own name. Now, you don't want to be responsible for that, do you? Think of all the problems it could cause."
The look he was giving me was both playful and stern, and my tummy knotted up pleasantly. "I guess not," I admitted with a little giggle.
"Now, we did say five, didn't we?"
"Yes. I'm sorry," I dropped my eyes, suddenly bashful. "I dozed off."
Kevin nodded, understanding as always. "If you go ahead and get changed, I bet we can still make our reservation."
I made my way to the bedroom with mixed feelings. On the one hand, he'd proven himself to be the gentleman I was so sure he was, and on the other, part of me wished he'd stripped that towel from my body and thrown it to the four corners of the world while ravishing me with his full, pouty mouth. The thought was enough to make me blush so hotly I couldn't cover it up with any amount of powder.
When I made my way back to the living room, dressed modestly in a pair of hip-hugger jeans and a light pink blouse, Kevin was still standing. "You should have made yourself at home," I said.
"I didn't think you'd be long." He grinned at me, his expression playful once more. "You look cute."
"Ouch." I responded with a wince before I had time to think better of it.
"What? Did I say something wrong?"
"It's nothing." I giggled. "Just… girls don't generally appreciate being called 'cute'. Unless it's by their sister," I added.
"Do you have a sister?"
"No," I admitted with another laugh. "I'm an only child."
"Ah." The way he said it, so knowingly and full of hidden meaning, made me furrow my brow.
"Ah, what?" I asked.
Kevin smiled sheepishly, as though he'd just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Nothing, just that it explains some things about you."
I knew the things most often said about only children were that we were selfish,
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