Now That I've Found You - Kristina Forest Page 0,74

that we’re playing beer pong on the table and that Ben said to tell you first because we all paid for the table and you should know how it’s being used. I can’t see anything. I’m definitely not watching the two of you kissing.”

“We’re not kissing,” Milo says. He wipes a hand over his face, embarrassed. “You don’t have to cover your eyes.”

Raf separates two fingers and peeks at us. “Okay, cool. Like I said, we’re playing beer pong if you want to join. You can even be on a team together! Or you could just stay in here…” He removes his hand and shoots me a pointed look before he closes the door.

Milo sighs. “He’s … a lot.”

“He thinks I’m going to seduce you and break up the band like Yoko Ono.”

“Why would Raf think that?” He smirks a little. “You and I aren’t even friends.”

“I know. That’s what I said.”

He scoots closer. “Then what would you call us?”

I stare at the lack of space between our bodies, the way his chest rises and falls with each breath. I look up at his handsome face, at his lips, and my pulse goes into overdrive.

Breathlessly, I say, “I have no idea what to call this.”

We stare at each other. My eyes roam his face. His full lips, which I’ve already kissed, the hoop nose ring. His dark-brown eyes, looking intensely back at me.

“What are you thinking?” he asks again.

I’m thinking that if it weren’t for Gigi disappearing, I wouldn’t be here right now. I’m thinking that Gigi’s disappearance has turned my life upside down, another surprise in a long string of unwanted surprises. I’m thinking that I’m not sure how many more surprises I can take.

What I end up saying is “I think I’m scared.”

He smiles a little. “Aren’t we all scared of something?”

“What scares you?” I ask.

He doesn’t answer right away. Instead, he continues to stare at me intently, searching my face. Finally, he says, “Hurting the people I care about scares me. That’s why I don’t like to lie.” He takes another long pause. “What scares you?”

My answer is convoluted. A lot of things scare me. Failure. Never booking another job. Never being able to place trust in another person again.

But in this immediate moment, my answer is simple.

“You,” I say.

He blinks. “Why?”

“You’re just so … so…” I find myself unable to describe him in one word. I’m equally unable to describe the warm feeling in my chest. I trail off, not even attempting to finish my sentence. I’ve purposely closed myself off to people, and somehow without even realizing it, I let down the drawbridge for Milo. It’s too late to pull it back up now; he’s already marching across.

I can’t say that I’m surprised. Somehow, he’s found a way to earn the trust of Gigi, the queen of grudges and privacy. It was only a matter of time before he wore me down too. And as much as I’ve resisted it, it’s a relief to finally let someone else in.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me, Evie.” His voice is soft and low.

He slides closer, and I let him. He reaches forward and carefully holds my face in his hands, and I let him do that too. When he leans closer, closer, closer, until our lips are a breath apart, I don’t stop him. I don’t want to. My heart is pounding. It feels so loud to me. I’m surprised he can’t hear it too.

“Are you afraid now?” he whispers.

Because I want to be honest, I nod. Quickly, I add, “But I still want you to kiss me.”

Our lips meet somewhere in the middle. His mouth is soft and warm, and his kiss is gentle. Then the kiss deepens, and he snakes his arm around my waist, pulling me closer, right up against his chest. I lower my hands so that they rest on either side of his neck. I feel his pulse beating wildly.

We kiss like we’ve been waiting to do this forever, and maybe we have. Now that we’re here, I don’t know why we waited this long.

Oh yeah, I have myself to blame for that.

Breathlessly, I finally pull away and stare at him. He looks dazed, still gazing at my mouth. I can’t seem to form a clear thought in my head.

“Overwhelming,” I manage to say.

He chuckles, surprised. “What?”

“You’re so overwhelming. In a good way. That’s what I wanted to say before.”

This makes him smile. He kisses me again until I feel