And he smelled good. Again. How was it she was just noticing this?
He released her and cocked an eyebrow. “You done in here?”
She nodded and moved to the side so he could pass. She went to her room but left the door open, and when he came out of the bathroom she called out before she could talk herself out of it.
“Graham?”
He appeared in the doorway, eyeing her perched on the edge of her bed. “Yeah?”
“Could, um, could I talk to you for a second?”
“Sure.” He walked in and sat beside her, leaving a perfectly respectable distance between them.
Claire tucked her hands between her knees. “I told Mia that we kissed.”
His brows shot up. His cut was healing nicely. “You did?”
“I’m sorry, I should have asked you first. I hope that’s okay—”
Graham laughed lightly. “I don’t care. I’m just surprised. I didn’t think you wanted anyone to know.”
“I tell her everything. She’ll probably tell Noah.”
He shrugged. “That’s fine. Thanks for telling me, though, so I can be prepared.” He adopted a terrible impression of Noah’s voice. “Hey, man, I heard you and Claire kissed. What’s the deal?” He angled himself as if talking to someone else. “Yeah, I told her I wanted to do other stuff but she turned me down. I cried. A lot.”
Claire punched his shoulder. “You did not.”
He laughed, a rich, deep sound, drawing her attention to his mouth. She thought, not for the first time, how handsome he was when he smiled.
She swallowed and told herself to be assertive. She was a strong, independent woman, and could tell a man what she wanted. “That’s actually what I wanted to talk about. The, um, turning-down part.”
“What about it?”
“Is this a ‘no take-backs’ situation? Or is the offer for a friends-with-benefits arrangement still on the table?”
“When you tell me no, I’ll respect it. Always. But you can one hundred percent take it back.”
“Really?” Mia’s suggestion about the online dating service popped into her head. Situations like what she was proposing with Graham were only successful when both parties were completely honest, right? “Even if I’m simultaneously on the lookout for the guy who’s perfect for me?”
“Fine by me.” His eyes held steady as he scooted a few inches closer. Slowly. “Are you taking your no back, Claire?”
“I—I think so.”
He shook his head. “Not good enough. You need to be sure.”
She paused, inhaling deeply and letting the scent of his toothpaste flood her senses. She leaned closer. “I’m saying yes, Graham.”
His brown eyes darted between hers.
Did he not believe her? Think she wasn’t certain she wanted to do this?
She resisted the urge to fidget or talk in circles and instead let her gaze roam his handsome face, hoping confident silence would speak more to her decision.
Would she really be able to touch this man whenever she wanted? In a way that wasn’t just friendly? Her attention snagged on his mouth, and the way his lower lip went a little crooked when it stretched into a grin.
Like now.
Damn. That smile was devastating.
He reached up with one hand, tracing the curve of her jaw with his thumb. “Well, then.” Her breath caught as he leaned in and kissed the corner of her mouth.
Her lips parted with a soft gasp and without thought, she lifted her hand to grip his muscular forearm. He brushed a kiss to her cheek, teasing her, somehow in perfect control despite having had no idea this would happen thirty seconds ago.
Claire, on the other hand, had thought about it the entire drive across town, and she was a nervous wreck.
Maybe that was the problem. She’d gone inside her head, which was the last place she wanted to be when Graham’s lips were within kissing distance.
She pressed her palm to his cheek and angled his face to hers, slanting her mouth over his. He moved even closer, the warmth of his thigh flush against hers, and her other hand slid into his thick hair.
A tiny part of her had wondered if the other night was a fluke and the only reason she’d gotten so hot so fast was because of the situation with the injured firefighter.
Judging by the race of her heart and immediate pulse of desire shooting to her core now, that wasn’t the case.
His strong fingers moved slowly down her back, leaving trails of heat in their wake, and the wet tip of his tongue traced the seam of her lips. The coil in her stomach released at the same time her brain registered the slam of the front door.