Country Kisses (3:AM Kisses Book #8)(9)
“What?” My entire body racks with shame. There’s no way in hell I’m letting this sweet, beautiful girl think this is some easy, pathetic letdown. “My boxers and I are happy where we are. The only thing I wanted at that bar just walked out of it.”
She pivots a moment, pausing with a laugh caught in that garnet smile. The light hits her just right, and Cassidy glows like an angel.
The door to the Hallowed Grounds coffee shop opens and closes, wafting out its hypnotic roasted bean scent.
“Listen—” she rakes her fingers through her thick blonde mane, tempting me to do the same. I’ve always been a sucker for a blonde, and Cassidy has out stunned them all by a mile. “I’m headed in to grab a cup a joe. If I’m going to be up all night with my new man”—she swings her purse between us—“I need to get my energy up. You’re welcome to join me if you’d like—for the coffee—what Battery Boy and I do in private is entirely our beeswax.” She turns a coy shoulder up at me before ditching inside. I follow her in and pay for our drinks before she can whip out her wallet.
We take a seat in the back, and she positions herself in the dark corner, leaving her face lost in the shadows. Something tells me Cassidy knows all the tricks to hiding her anomaly as best she can. Back at the bar, she made it a point to keep her head turned just enough throughout our entire conversation. There’s something about her struggle to hide her beautiful face that I find tragically endearing. I’d tell her I don’t mind, but I don’t think we’re there yet. If I have anything to do about it, we’ll get there and then some.
“So tell me about you, city boy.” She gives a playful wink while taking a careful sip of her latte. “What keeps you up at night, other than luring barflies to your bedroom?”
“I am a city boy—New York City to be exact. And I prefer the barflies take me to their place.”
“Why’s that?” She reaches over and thumps her hot pink candy-coated nails over the tabletop in a soothing rhythm, and my balls ache, just begging her to find a home for that hand somewhere on my body.
“I can dictate when I leave.” A part of me hates that I delved right in with the confessional. I’ve never once wanted to stay the night, and now, I’ve put my secret out there, laid it bare for the universe to slice and dice and invite her evil twin karma to the party to serve me my balls on a skewer. Never lead with a horrible confession.
“I get it.” She averts her eyes as if she’s been there. “I’m not really a morning person myself. Now, your sis—” Her eyes widen as she catches herself. “Your insistence to slow it down—what’s that about?”
“I’m ready to find the ‘one.’” There, the second nugget of truth she’s managed to excavate from me. “All of my friends are in serious relationships. Heck, my baby sister has landed in one herself. I’m ready to hunt the world to find my own unicorn, much like yourself.” I offer a peaceable smile as I toss the mythological euphemism right back in her court.
“But?” She bats her thick, dark lashes, and my dick whimpers for affection.
“But, I don’t want to sleep with everything that moves. That wasn’t quite working for me as far as the unicorn discovery goes. In fact, it might be hampering it.”
“I’m guessing it made the big three mighty happy, though.” She toasts me with her next sip.
The big three. A dirty grin begs to bloom, but I resist the urge. “That it did.” I lean back and examine her like this—so young, sweet as candy, with the face of a supermodel even if she doesn’t believe it herself. Cassidy deserves so much better than some silicone prosthetic making her smile. She deserves a real person, a bona fide body warming her bed. “So, when do we begin?”
Her brows peak with a mild interest. “Begin?”
“Our unified search for that mythological beast, the unicorn. Now that we’ve found our respective bed warmers, we’re free to take our time shopping for soul mates.” My features harden as I gear up for a proposal of my own. “I’m all for warming your bed. And I’ve changed my mind. I’m ready to start tonight.”
Her eyes widen in response. Her bowtie mouth opens and closes as if those were the last words she expected to hear.
“What happened to your genuine concern for my sobriety?”
“I bought you coffee.” I lean in, my eyes never wavering from hers. “You’ve sobered up nicely.”
She clears her throat, doing a quick visual sweep of the vicinity. “That’s all fine and dandy, but there’s no way in hell I’m taking you up to my dorm—not tonight, not ever, city boy. Let’s just say my roommate has a bit of a rotten temper.” The idea of a smile dances on her lips, and there’s not a whole lot holding me back from leaping at her from across the table. “I’m betting she wouldn’t care too much for finding you anywhere near my bed.” That sassy as hell grin of hers finally breaks loose, smooth and easy as if she’s holding back an inside joke I haven’t caught onto yet.
“My place it is.”
Her mouth falls open with a silent laugh. “You just said you don’t take girls home. Which is it, city slicker? Or did the big three manage to persuade you into breaking a rule or two for the night?”