me as he kneeled on the mattress. I could smell his coconut-scented shampoo. I may have bought a bottle to use when I beat off in the shower. I’m weak, all right?
He leaned down and kissed my nape. “Are you busy tomorrow? I thought we could go to Fork.”
I squinted at him over my shoulder. “What is that, some sort of position? Is that the one where you—”
“No,” he said quickly. “And please don’t pull up an X-rated PowerPoint presentation.”
I shrugged and dropped my face back into the pillow. “Fork you.”
He chuckled. “Fork. It’s that new restaurant in downtown Miami. It’s a bit of a drive, but it’s supposed to be nice with views of the city. They have a lot of fusion cuisine, which I knew you like.”
“Oh.”
“Oh?” He poked me in the side, and I flinched, even though it didn’t hurt. “Is that a good oh? Or an, oh crap, I need an escape hatch oh?”
“I never need an escape hatch when I’m with you.” I gave him a moment to enjoy the sweetness of it all before I added a squirt of lemon. “But that sounds suspiciously like a date.”
“It’s just a meal, Fossie.” He thrust against me lazily a few times, and I found myself arching up to meet him. “And then, I think we should come back here so I can fuck this ass.”
Another few thrusts, and I let out a soft moan. He chuckled wickedly. “You good with that?”
“Apparently.”
He kissed me one last time before levering himself off the bed. I heard him gathering his clothes and starting to dress. “I’ll be here at seven, and you’ll be ready in your nice black slacks and that green sweater that makes your eyes pop.”
“I’m not wearing a fucking sweater in this heat,” I said crossly. “And how did you know I never know what the hell to wear?”
“Kona told me.” Journey chuckled as Kona the traitor rolled over with a long sigh. “It’s a lightweight sweater. Practically a shirt with long sleeves. We’re also going to be inside ninety percent of the time.”
“It’s that other ten percent I’m worried about,” I complained. “I might pass out, right there in the entrance of Spoon.”
“Fork,” he corrected with a chuckle. “If you pass out, I’ll roll you to the table and you’ll have a nice meal waiting when you come to.”
Hmph. I rolled out of bed as he started putting on his sneakers. “You don’t have to get up,” he said. “I know how to let myself out.”
“I know.” I yawned as I pulled on my boxers. “Kona needs a bathroom break, or she’ll never give me any peace.”
I didn’t even remember how normal people woke up anymore. I woke up to Kona an inch away from my nose, treating me to a hot breath facial. When she was certain I was awake, she barked in my face. Just once. It was a particular joy of hers, and one more thing I would keep from the owners of her future forever home. Some things had to be discovered.
She padded behind us as we headed for the front door. I let her out but stayed on the porch since I was barefoot. It wasn’t all bad because I got another chance to kiss Journey one more time before he left. Okay, maybe more than once. All right, we wound up kissing on the porch for a bit, long enough for Kona to have done her business ten times over. Journey’s hands looped around my neck lightly, but I decided to make better use of mine and grip his ass possessively. From the way he hummed against my mouth when I squeezed, he didn’t seem to mind.
Our kisses were unusual, though. They weren’t our usual combustible, dirty, openmouthed affair. They were softer and hesitant, almost like we didn’t want to spoil the magic of kissing under the soft glow of the porch light, with nothing but the vague sound of cicadas around us.
It was an unfortunate repeat of our kissing session in the kitchen earlier, after we’d finished doing the dishes. He’d backed me up against the sink and we’d spent a good ten minutes doing our Hallmark best to audition for a cheesy Christmas movie. He was the city chef who wanted my restaurant, and I was the hometown cook of few words who was never going to let that happen.
He pulled back to stare at me for a few moments, his face solemn. I searched his expression,