Till Summer Do Us Part(83)

“Do not second-guess your answer,” I tell her. “Be brave and tell me why you like my positivity.”

“You’re right. Okay.” She clears her throat and continues, “I admire your positivity because as someone who spent the last few years living in a household where everything was negative, where nothing was done right, where complaining was the number one role of communication, you bring such a light to a dark, dim world. You’re able to see things for their beauty rather than their flaws. You’re able to find growth rather than encourage the regression. You’re able to take an uncomfortable situation and put a fun twist on it. You don’t let people hold you down, nor do you hold them down yourself. You lift them up. And you stand up for those who need it. I’ve never met anyone like you before.” Her thumb strokes against my neck. “And I’m really happy that I did.”

I rub my hands up her sides. “Thank you, Scottie. That was incredibly nice of you.”

“I mean it,” she says with a smirk.

“I know you do.”

Then the music ends, and Sanders calls out. “Okay, rotate seats.”

Scottie gets off my lap and takes my hand in hers as we move over to the next chair. I take a seat first, and once again, she climbs onto my lap, but this time, there’s no hesitation; she almost seems at home as she sits on top of me. And I like that.

I like that a lot.

The music starts, and I pull the card from the side of the chair and, once again, read it out loud.

“Cup your partner’s cheek, bring your foreheads together, and whisper what you like most about their body.” I look up at Scottie. “Huh, this is a bit more intense.”

“It’ll be fine,” she says with a wave of her hand.

So we both grip each other’s cheeks, my palm to her soft skin. Then together, we touch our foreheads, the position oddly comforting given how close we are. I stare into her eyes, our noses nearly connecting.

She wets her lips, and then I do the same as a spark of electricity seems to bounce between us.

Yeah…way more intense.

She goes first and surprises me as she says, “You have the nicest stack of abs I think I’ve ever seen on a man. Like, incredible. Defined. Sexy. Just hard not to stare at.”

I can’t hold back my smile. I know this is hard for her, offering compliments. A part of me thinks it comes from years of little communication with her ex, but I love that she was able to jump right in and offer me a compliment. And a fucking good one at that.

“Thanks, Pips.” I wet my lips again, wanting to pull her in just a little bit closer. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—I fucking love your legs. They’re so sexy, and I bet…” I pause. Do I say the rest? Do I tell her what I’m really thinking? Why the fuck not? “I bet they’d look good wrapped around me.”

Her mouth slightly parts as her grip on my cheek shifts. I wait for her to pull away, to almost be surprised by my answer, but instead, she replies, “I love your arms. It’s obvious that you spend time in the gym, and I love that they’re not super bulky but rather thick and carved, and they wrap around me perfectly.”

I tug on my lip ring and say, “Pips, that ass of yours in those pajama shorts that you wear? Deathly. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve snuck glances at you while you wear those.”

I can feel her cheek heat from the compliment.

“You have a nice…um…bulge.”

That makes me chuckle.

“Just…thick-looking.”

“Checked it out?”

“Hard not to in the shorts you wear.”

Satisfaction rushes through me. “You have great tits. I stared at them a few times while you were in your bathing suit. Also, amazing nipples, and you have no problem with them being hard, which I love. I hate when women hide their hard nipples. You don’t. You just let them be hard, and it’s sexy as fuck.”

She wets her lips again, and I catch her chest rising and falling just a little bit harder. “I really like how big—”

“Time’s up,” Sanders says as the music stops, and we’re forced to get out of our chair.

She takes my hand, and I lean down and whisper, “You really like how big what?”

She shakes her head. “That activity is over. On to the next.”

“Tease,” I say, tugging on her hand as we find the next seat.

Once we are situated, the music starts, and I pull the card.

“Take this time to freely touch your partner in any way you want.” I lift a brow and smirk at her. “Any way I want, huh? Where should I start?”

“You seem far too excited about this.”

“Damn right I am. After you fondled me this morning, it’s my turn to have some fun.” I wiggle my eyebrows, and she rolls her eyes dramatically.

Fuck, I’m loving this playful, lighter side of her.

“Well, I know where I want to start,” she says.

“Yeah? Where’s that? Where you left off this morning?”

“No,” she answers and then lifts her thumb to my lip ring. “This fascinates me. I feel feral when you tug on it with your teeth.”

“Feral, huh?”

“It’s just one of those things that you don’t expect to be sexy, but then it is. Just like your tattoo.” Her finger drags over the ink. “It’s really simple, understated, yet it looks incredibly hot on you.”