It makes me want to kiss him.
Or fuck him.
Or kiss him and fuck him.
Cal holds up the sparkling apple cider bottle with a scrunched nose. “Do you have some exciting news to share with me or is this an insult to injury?”
I laugh. “I’m not pregnant.”
Declan reenters the room. “Not yet at least.”
My whole body feels about twenty degrees too hot. The way this man looks at me makes me wonder if it’s possible to get pregnant via intense staring and palpable longing. Inquiring minds want to know.
“Well, that’s my cue to go find something stronger to drink. There’s no way I’ll get through being the fifth wheel without wanting to chop my own dick off.”
Declan shoots Cal a withering look as he leaves the living room.
“So…” I start.
He uses the now working remote to turn on the TV and find the right channel.
“What’s the real reason you planned this all?”
His back muscles shift underneath his T-shirt. “Gezelligheid1.”
I pull out my phone and stare at the search bar with a pinched expression.
“G-E-Z-E-L-L-I-G-H-E-I-D.” He spells it out slowly without me even asking.
“Where did you learn this one?”
“During my month studying abroad in the Netherlands.”
I laugh when the page loads. “Cozy? That’s why you did this?”
He shakes his head. “It’s more than that. It’s about creating a place where people can relax and feel happy.”
“Since when do you care about making people happy?”
“I couldn’t care less about anyone else’s happiness besides your own.”
My chest aches from his confession. “That has to be one of the sweetest —but extremely fucked up—things anyone has ever said to me.”
“Fucked up how?” He seems genuinely confused by my statement.
“Because you should do nice things because you want to, not because you think it would make me happy.”
“I want to make you happy, so therefore, I do nice things.”
Well, I can’t exactly debate his kind of logic on that one, especially when it makes me want to kiss him until we’re both breathless.
I bite down on my lip. “What happens when what makes me happy goes against what you want?”
His gaze darkens. “Then I’ll convince you otherwise.”
My head tilts. “That’s not how relationships work.”
“We aren’t a typical relationship, so therefore, the same rules don’t apply here.”
“There might be a time in your life when you can’t convince me. What then?”
“When it comes to you, I’m not opposed to using any means necessary.”
“Including torture?”
He cups my cheek and draws me toward him. “Is it still considered torture if I let you come?”
“I’ve unlocked a sexed-up monster.”
He laughs as he pulls me into a searing kiss that makes my toes curl. With the caress of his tongue against mine, our conversation is erased from recent memory.
The doorbell rings, and Declan hesitates to let me go. He tugs me back toward him for one last kiss.
The doorbell chimes again, and I laugh as I leave a scowling Declan behind to go answer the front door. I throw it open to find Rowan and Zahra standing hand in hand on the porch.
Zahra looks over at me with a smile. “Hey!” She doesn’t give me a chance to say anything before she barrels into me and throws her arms around my torso. “I’m so excited to hang out with you!”
“Me too,” I wheeze.
Declan’s shadow seems to make everyone freeze in place.
“Declan.” Rowan tips his chin.
“Thanks for coming over.” He holds out his hand for Rowan to take.
Rowan’s lips twitch as he ignores it and throws an arm around his back and gives him a pat. “Your threats made me curious.”
“Threats?” I ask.
Declan doesn’t pay any attention to my question as he shoots Rowan a death glare.
Rowan turns his gaze toward me, and a smile brightens his whole face.
“I’m going to thoroughly enjoy this all.”
“Are you a big fan of F1?”
He looks at Declan as he responds to my question, “The biggest. I love watching people crash and burn.”
“That’s horrifying.” Zahra smacks Rowan’s arm.
Declan’s jaw ticks.
“Well, as fun as this whole pissing contest is, some of us came here for the mimosas.” Zahra loops her arm in mine and drags me away from Declan and Rowan. “Lead the way.”