wanted to come back the next day to help them put up their tree was kind of sweet, if a little overwhelming. I did my best to take bites, sometimes doing more pushing my food around than eating.
Whenever Joe or Sara focused on me though, I pushed through. I actually managed all of the sliced turkey, some of the cranberry sauce, a full helping of sweet potatoes, and the grilled brussel sprouts. Ian kept our feet entangled, since we were sitting across from each other. When it was time for dessert, I had to beg off.
“I really can’t eat anymore,” I said, almost pleading. “I’m so stuffed. It was so good.”
Ian shifted to pull out his phone, and then he snapped a picture of me.
“What are you doing?” Sara asked him with a frown.
“Documenting the moment that we discovered Frankie can actually get full.”
I blew a raspberry at him, and he laughed, so did his dad and his mom. Thankfully, they let me skip the dessert, though Sara said she was sending a pie home with me and more leftovers.
Never had I been so grateful that the guys were staying with me. The leftovers alone would take care of a third of my food budget without even trying. After cleaning up, Ian and I ended up in his room where I could flop on the bed and die in peace while he played with his guitar.
Both of his parents had watched us as we headed up the stairs, and never had I been so aware of their scrutiny.
“Stop worrying about them,” he told me, while I was laying with my left arm over my eyes. “Mom loves you, and I thought Dad was pretty cool.”
“They were great,” I told him. “Beyond great.” I dropped my arm to look at him. “But it’s like they think we came up here to make out. And that’s…weird.”
He grinned slowly, still tuning his guitar. “They aren’t going to be sneaking up to listen at the door.”
Kill me, I did not need that mental image. “You suck.”
A soft laugh escaped him. “And you’re embarrassed.”
“Not embarrassed, just… Your dad already had problems with me…”
He stopped playing with the guitar. “He never had problems with you. He hated the situation you were in, and he was worried about you. But you? They love you, Frankie.”
I chewed my lower lip and then sat up slowly. I’d kicked my shoes off as soon as we were in the room. “I don’t want to mess this up again.”
“Neither do I,” he told me. Then he glanced at his guitar, then at me. “Do you want to make out?”
My eyes widened. Um… “While they’re downstairs?”
He shrugged. “If they already think we are, what does it matter?”
I opened my mouth to argue that point and then snapped it shut again. He quirked his brows and then began to set his guitar down. Rising, he pressed a finger to his lips and walked over to lock his door, and then he moved back to his stereo and turned it on.
The strumming of his guitar filled the room, and I bit my lip. He turned it up and then walked back over to the bed. When his lyrics drifted out of the speakers, I groaned. Okay, I didn’t think he could write a bad song, but this was one of the first ones he’d ever played for me. His eyes were on me as I scooted to the end of the bed. He dipped his head to kiss me, and I sighed against his mouth.
I wanted… I wanted a lot of things, and when I fumbled with the snaps on his jeans, he lifted his head and glanced at me.
“Frankie?”
“I want you,” I told him, and his smile dazzled me. “All of you.”
He gripped my upper arms gently and pulled me to my feet, and for one second, my heart fell. The last time I offered, he’d turned me down.
Then he teased his fingers under the edge of my sweater and tugged it upward, over and off, leaving me in the much thinner tank top I’d worn underneath.
“Are you sure?” was the only thing he asked.
“Yes,” I promised, all trace of hesitation gone. He swooped his head down, and then his lips moved over mine, hard, fierce, and demanding, even as he wrapped his arms around me and dragged me in close.
Oh.
Yes.
Exactly what I wanted.
Chapter Ten
In Your Eyes
Locked against Ian was probably one of the best places I’d ever been. The ferociousness in his