Kissing Her Crush (6 page)

Natalie’s soft hands held his face, and she kissed him so hard that his legs went numb. Once he managed to suck in some oxygen, he tried to pull her to him, but something was stopping him, a physical barrier stronger than his need to hold her close.

So he made the most of it by sliding his hands into her hair, combing through the long, untamed strands. When his mouth touched her neck, she made a gasping sound that went straight to his head.

But then she pulled back.

Was she stopping them? Was there an annoying nagging at the back of her mind, too?

No, she hadn’t done it to stop, but to slither under the safety bar. With blood rushing behind his ears, Luke slid to the middle of the bench seat, pushed the bar away as far as he could, then pulled her onto his lap, her legs straddling him.

His lips found her neck again, and he heard a soft laugh, that same little gasp. The sound made him hungry. She held his head and tilted his face, cupping his cheeks like before, kissing him squarely on the mouth until his mind emptied of all nagging voices.

Needing more of her to touch, he ran his hands up her thighs, feeling the rough denim between him and her skin. They trailed to the small of her back, up and down her spine, settling on the slice of bare skin between her jeans and shirt. But not settled for long. His needy hands were inside her shirt, holding her sides just under her ribs, feeling and hearing her breath hitch and turn ragged.

Blood pumped from his chest to hungrier parts of his body, reacting to her mouth finding his neck. Then the other side of his neck. The only thing Luke could do was lean back and hold on with his fingers digging into her sides.

With his face buried in her hair, he smelled sweet shampoo. Could it be chocolate-scented? His breathing was becoming more labored, and pretty soon his hands would not be satisfied with their current location.

“Sir? Sir, you’ll have to pay for that.”

The faceless, floating voice sounded like it was coming from underwater, from inside a tunnel.

Tunnel? Water? Chocolate?

Oh, damn.

The first twinge of reality was sensing her soft weight on his lap. Luke opened his eyes to find Natalie staring down at him. He tried to blink away the bright light. Hadn’t it just been dark?

She sat up straight, freeing her fingers from where they’d been knotting the back of his hair. They both looked toward the voice. It was the same worker who’d put them in the ride at the beginning.

“We have it on camera,” the kid said. “We have proof.”

“Proof,” Luke repeated. “Don’t tell me kissing on this ride is a crime.”

“No, but breaking the safety equipment is.” The guy pointed at the lap bar that was not only not across their laps, but pulled off one hinge and hanging at an awkward angle.

Hell. Talk about brute strength from an adrenaline rush.

He glanced at Natalie who was biting her bottom lip while trying to wiggle off his lap.

“Luke,” she said in a pointed tone, “I can’t get off of you if you’re holding me…there.”

“Oh.” He removed his hands that were still way up the back of her shirt, and she slid off onto her feet, stumbling like a baby goat. “Careful.”

“I’m fine,” she said, not looking at him.

But he couldn’t keep his eyes off her as she climbed out. Those limber arms, long legs, and that mouth. Damn, that mouth. He almost couldn’t move, but then he noticed the glares of the worker and of the people in the waiting line, some with children. He quickly leaped from the boat.

“Whatever it costs,” he told the worker, drawing him aside. “I’ll pay for the repairs, all of it. It was completely my fault.”

Natalie had a hand up, blocking her face like she didn’t want to be seen. Like that would make a difference now.

“Take this form.” The guy handed him a piece of paper. “Go straight to the administration office. They’re waiting for you. It’s over by the—”
“I know where it is,” Natalie cut in. “Come on.” She was already walking at a fast clip. Luke had to jog to catch up. “I can’t believe that just happened.”

“Which part?”

She glared over her shoulder at him. “Not funny.”

“Kind of funny.”

“Hi, Natalie,” a man said, strolling by.

“Hey, Milton!—
Walk faster
,” she hissed at Luke.

The administrative building wasn’t far, and they walked in silence the rest of the way. Luke was surprised at how many people greeted Natalie by name. Though he got a few looks, no one acknowledged him.

“That’s it.” She pointed at the first door.

“After you,” he said, holding it open.

“Jeez. I
so
don’t want to go in there,” she said, gnawing at her bottom lip. Luke didn’t ask why, because after a deep breath, she did go in.

“Well, well, Natalie Holden,” said a woman with gray hair and peach lipstick. “You and your friend put on quite a show.”

Natalie pulled at the neck of her shirt, looking flustered, but cute. “Sorry about that.”

“You’re lucky. If my grandson was working the office today, it’d already be on YouTube.”

“YouTube?” Luke cut in, thoughts of cuteness gone.

“She’s kidding,” Natalie said.

After that pseudo-lecture the other night, his family would murder him if he was caught on tape making out at Hersheypark. He was trying to repair their relationship, not rip the stitches.

Worse, though…no one at work could find out. This was exactly what HR was looking for: an example of ethical misconduct. Not that he had to maintain a squeaky-clean reputation to be hired by the NIH, but this wouldn’t exactly help his cause.

How had he let it happen? Well, he
hadn’t
…it just
happened
, like he was out of control. Which was complete BS because he believed in the exact opposite. Mind over matter could overcome just about anything, like craving sugar and fat, as well as irresistible women.

Something about it made him smile, though. Luke couldn’t think of the last time he’d made out with a woman that didn’t result in clothes hitting the floor. They’d just kissed, like they really were a couple of kids taking advantage of the tunnel’s privacy.

“Ah, yes. It’s you.”

Luke snapped awake to see the gray-haired woman looking at him while adjusting her glasses. She smiled like he was something to eat. “There aren’t many good shots of you when Natalie was on your lap. She’s either leaning over you, or you’re at her neck like Bela Lugosi. Though there’s one really good part at the end—”

“Anyway,” Natalie cut in. “He’ll pay the fine and we’ll go.”

“All right, dear.” She adjusted her glasses again. “But I must compliment both of you on your style.”

Luke cleared his throat, passed the women a credit card, didn’t bother looking at the charges, and signed his name blankly.

“Come back any time,” the woman said. “
Any
time.” He couldn’t help laughing, but when he turned to share the moment with Natalie, she’d gone.

By the time he’d made it outside, she was a good ways away, and he had to take her by the elbow so she’d stop. “Are you mad?”

“I must be, right? Freakin’ loco in the cabeza.”

“I mean, are you angry about…what happened?”

“Oh.” She bit her lip. Luke remembered how it had felt between his teeth, soft and full. “Why did you do that, anyway?”

“Kiss you?”

She stared up at the sky. “Um,
yeah
.”

He slid his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “It was an impulse. You were saying that stuff about it not being a requirement and then the lights went out and, I don’t know. It was entrapment. I had no choice.”

“You always have a choice.”

Luke sighed. Of course, she was right. It might’ve been an impulse, but he could’ve squelched it. Truth was, he’d been dying to kiss her; he just hadn’t known it until that moment.

“Okay then.” He looked her dead in the eyes. “Why did you kiss me back?”

She rubbed her nose and glanced away. “Yeah, um, I claim entrapment, too.”

They looked at each other, a moment of heavy silence, then Luke said, “We broke the ride.”

Finally, a big smile curved those lips. “And we looked worse than those kids who were in the boat before us. I was straddling you like it was prom night, and your hands were about to unhook my—”

“No they weren’t,” Luke jumped in, grinning. “But if that’s what you want, I can certainly—”

“No!” She huffed and crossed her arms. Natalie Holden was just as tempting post-kiss as she was pre-kiss. “We can both call it entrapment or caught up in the moment or whatever, but it will never happen again.”

“Was it that bad for you? I might be rusty at the whole first kiss thing, but you seemed into it.”

Two starbursts of red spread across her cheeks. “That wasn’t our…I mean, it’s not that,” she said, dropping her voice as well as her chin. “I’m not about to screw up this trial because you’re an awesome kisser.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “I am, huh?”

“We have to drop the subject. Let’s just silently agree to never speak of this, either.”

“Either? Do we share other secrets?”

Her face went pale and then she blushed again. Her expressions were like a living Monet. “The importance of my job is only one item on the laundry list of reasons why it was a mistake.”

Luke was about to ask what her other reasons were, but didn’t, since he had his own laundry list.

“Fine.” He was capable of controlling himself around her. And since kissing hadn’t legitimately crossed his mind until the moment it happened, it wouldn’t be a problem to not do it again.

Then Natalie bit her bottom lip. And Luke could taste it.

“If you’re serious about not wanting me to kiss you, you better stop.”

“Huh?”

“When you bite your lip like that, it’s damn near… I’m only human.”

“I won’t bite my lip if you won’t…” She paused and her eyes did a quick sweep up the front of his body, causing a fist of heat to punch through his chest. “Um, just like, wear a bag over your head or something.”

“Like a grocery bag?”

“Yeah, that’d be great.” She smiled and rolled her eyes. “As hilarious as it might be, we’re done with this subject. The more we talk about it, the more I want to…”

He didn’t interrupt. She might not be biting her lip, but the thought of never finishing that kiss made his brain ache.

She slid on a pair of sunglasses and turned into the breeze. “The subject is officially dropped forever. Okay?”

Though Luke wasn’t quite ready to not think about what they’d done in the tunnel, he did agree with her. Nothing was more important than landing this job at the NIH.

“Okay by me,” he said, facing the other direction. “Anyway, it was only a kiss.”

Chapter Five

A
fter refusing a ride home from Luke, Natalie didn’t have the guts to wait for Ivy to finish at the med center. Her best friend would have questions about why she’d dragged Luke to the park, what they’d done there, and why she was now standing at the entrance gate alone. Fuming.

So instead, she called Muff.

“What were you doing here?” her brother asked while Natalie fastened her seatbelt.

“Working,” she said, as he maneuvered though the parking lot.

“Since when do you work at Hersheypark?”

“I don’t.” So much for no nagging questions. She rolled down her window for fresh air and immediately spotted a black Jeep tailing them. “Son of a— He’s
following
me.”

Muff hit the brakes. “Who?”

“Don’t stop!” Natalie slid down in the seat, though it was too late to hide. Luke obviously hadn’t left the park but had waited until someone came to get her. She wasn’t sure if she should be flattered or ticked.

It was only a kiss
. Luke had actually said that to her.
Only a kiss
. Nothing could’ve ticked her off more or made her feel like she had when they were kids and Luke never gave her the time of day. Even after the boathouse.

He hadn’t noticed her back then, so why would he notice her now?

Before her heart could fill with the familiar disappointment that should’ve been buried deep, she decided to think of it as
only
a kiss, too. She was a grown woman and could kiss anyone she wanted without it meaning anything.

“Who’s following you?” Brandon repeated.

Natalie bit the inside of her cheeks. “No one. A work colleague.”

“You said he.”

“Yeah.” She scrunched lower in the seat, practically eating her knees.

“Since when do you work with guys?”

“Since always. I don’t tell you everything.”

“Liar.”

Natalie turned to him. “Why are you being a pain in the ass?”

He adjusted the rearview mirror. “You caught me on a good day.”

“I like it. I miss your pain in my ass.”

“Gross. My good day is over.”

Normally, she’d be thrilled to get more than two words out of her brother. And she was tempted to circle back to the subject he seemed interested in.

Only a kiss.
She inwardly scoffed.
Bite me.

After they passed through an intersection, she casually glanced behind them. The Jeep was gone.

Good. No reason for him to follow me like he’s my brother.

This made her turn to Brandon. His shaggy hair wasn’t blocking his eyes. Probably because he was driving. Muff wasn’t a danger to himself or others, and ever since he’d gotten his license, he was very careful behind the wheel. Driving was one of the only times he seemed almost like a normal kid.

“Do you mind if I ask why you’re in a better mood?”

He shrugged. ”I don’t know. Right before you called my cell, I finished my homework and was about to turn on the TV when I heard Mom on the phone. I usually don’t care what she’s saying, even when it’s about me—and it’s always about me. She was saying something about you and…what you’re doing at work. For me.”

Natalie hadn’t told Brandon the subject matter of her research, or what she hoped to accomplish if she proved her thesis. “Is that okay?” she asked. Even if it wasn’t, she was going through with the trial anyway.

“I guess.” A corner of his otherwise flat mouth twitched. It could’ve been a frown, could’ve been a smile. Either way, emotion was a good sign. “But, um, I mean, thanks for at least trying to help.”

“Of course,” she said, feeling so much love for her little brother it actually hurt her heart. As they drove home, more than ever, Natalie knew she had to get through this first phase and secure another grant. Nothing and nobody would stand in her way.

E
ven after she’d refused a ride home for the tenth time, Luke hadn’t been about to leave her standing at the entrance gate alone. He wasn’t a complete ass. So he’d sat in his car and waited, keeping an eye on her from the side mirror.

Huh. She had a temper, too. He’d never been into annoyingly stubborn women—not that he was into Natalie. He’d meant what he’d said. It was only a kiss. And just a kiss—even an extraordinarily hot one—would not make him forget his reason for being in Hershey. He’d finish this job, go back to Philly, then hopefully begin planning his move to DC.

Now that he was far removed from that kiss and could think, he also had to admit his brain was in no way ready to be
into
someone. The lies, the manipulating, the total betrayal of trust. Even the memory of what led to his divorce was enough to stop his irrational attraction to Natalie Holden dead in its tracks.

He didn’t have to wait in the Jeep for long. A silver car pulled up and she got inside. Luke was too far away to get a good look at the driver, but it was definitely a dude. Tall, from the looks of it. But not nearly as tall as Luke. He could take him.

Take him?
Where the hell had that come from?

On the heels of that, a chilling thought landed in his mind. Luke hadn’t once considered that Natalie wasn’t available. Had she mentioned a boyfriend? If she did have one, what was all that in the tunnel? Sure, he’d started it, and he still blamed most of it on the atmosphere of that stupid ride—“entrapment,” they’d both called it. But she’d been into it, because Luke wasn’t in the habit of breaking innocent amusement park rides without just cause. And there had definitely been cause.

He ran a tight fist over his jaw. Not that “cause” mattered. The thought of her having a boyfriend was the basic equivalent of jumping in the freezing cold ocean. He’d never pursue someone who wasn’t 100 percent available. Celeste’s betrayal was too fresh on his mind to put another guy through that. Ever.

He only followed the silver car for two blocks, because he was sure he’d been made when Natalie poked her head out the window. After that, he hung a right at the light and headed to Derry Woods Road, up the windy hill toward his parents’ house.

Roxy had driven back to Jersey the day before, but Dexter’s car was there when he pulled into the driveway.

“Rough day at the salt mine, bro?” Dex called from the porch.

Aw, shit. Had someone told his family about what happened in the Kiss Tunnel? He kept his sunglasses on to hide his expression. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Dexter pointed at his Apple Watch. Did Dad know Dex was wearing their competition? He was also in a suit and tie. Even away from his Manhattan corner office, his brother dressed the part.

“It means it’s not even three-thirty and you’re done for the day. How do I land a cush job like that?”

“Oh.” Luke reminded himself to breathe. “No, um, yeah, we finished early.”
Three hours ago, actually.
“First day. Still feeling each other out.”

Dexter’s eyebrows shot up. “Feeling each other out? Are you referring to the girl from the other night?”

Damn. Luke was so not in the mood to talk about Natalie or give any details about what went on today—in or out of the med center. “Don’t read into anything. We’re completely professional.”
Lie
. “Speaking of work, why are you here and not back in the city? Enjoying another four-day weekend?”

He and Dex walked into the house. “Not even. Pop and I have been on conference calls all day. Sometimes I think you made the right move by not working the family business.”

“You make us sound like the Hershey Township mafia.”

Dex moaned and looked at the ceiling. “Actually feels like that on days like today. Good thing I’m a workaholic.”

“As I recall, you lost your shirt in a certain bet we made about me finishing grad school.”

“Don’t remind me,” his brother said with a laugh. “So really, how was the first day?”

“Fine. Nothing unusual.”
Big fat lie.
They entered the kitchen, and since it was too early for a beer, Luke tossed Dex a water.

Despite his mind over matter philosophy, Luke knew if he didn’t stay distracted, he might spend the rest of the afternoon trying not to think about Natalie’s bottom lip.

“Feel like going to the club and hitting balls?” he asked.

“Dude, you’ve been away from home too long. We don’t go to the club. We have our own driving range.”

“Since when?”

“Since I turned the balcony of the guest house into one.”

“What about all the balls?”

“Ya know the Voyles family down the hill with all the kids? I told them they can keep whatever they find. Clean shots over three hundred yards go straight into the pond.”

Luke crossed his arms. “Isn’t that bad for the fish or ducks or whatever Mom stocks it with?” Not that Luke was a bleeding heart, but he didn’t like the idea of purposely polluting the environment.

“I had a filtering system installed.”

“In the pond?”

Dex nodded. “And I tip the pool guy to run a net over it once a week. He said he’s never fished out a single ball.”

Luke put a hand on is brother’s shoulder. “That’s because golf balls don’t float. That’s physics.”

“Huh.” Dex scratched his head. “Hadn’t thought of that. Anyway, it’s a perfect day to work on your terrible backswing.”

“My backswing kills yours.”

“Care to make it interesting?”

For the next two hours, Luke and Dexter smacked Titleists, accompanied by plenty of sibling trash talk. By the time their parents came home, Luke had practically forgotten about Natalie. And her bottom lip.

N
atalie hadn’t slept well the night before. Not only did Luke keep popping into her dreams at the most random times, but after their short drive from Hersheypark, Brandon went straight to his room and didn’t come out the rest of the day. Not even for dinner.

One step forward sometimes means three steps back
, she had to tell herself.

After dinner with her parents, she drove to her apartment. Ivy had called twice, wanting to recap the rest of the day. But Natalie didn’t feel like talking.

Her first session at the med center had been a colossal failure. The next morning, as she threw on work clothes and minimal makeup, she could barely look at herself in the mirror.

How could she have blown an entire day just because she couldn’t stop arguing with Luke? And then, after the humiliation of being kicked out of her own lab, when she’d tried to play nice, they’d played
too nice
and it had turned into a full-on teenager make-out session, hot enough for Instagram.

What the hell had come over her?

The simple truth was, she hadn’t been with a guy in three years, not even a kiss, and she was overly ripe—and Luke’s gorgeous, willing face just happened to be there, along with feelings she
used
to have.

Frickin’ inconvenient time for those feelings to make a brief comeback in that tunnel.

She made it a point to arrive at the lab early to catch some alone time and read Ivy’s notes. Instead, she found Luke leaning against the locked door, his hands in his jeans pockets, his long legs crossed at the ankles. The epitome of relaxed and confident dude made her lips start to tingle.

“Hey,” he said.

Damn, he looked good. His brown hair had some sexy bed-head going, and he was rocking the unshaved look. She couldn’t help noticing his muscles flex when he saw her. From the way his blue button down shirt strained over his chest and biceps, she had a heck of a time replying to his greeting.

“Hey,” she managed to utter. “Why are you early?”

He pushed off the door. “No email from Ivy, so I need to get caught up from yesterday.” He nodded at her. “I take it you had the same idea?”

“Yeah,” she said, trying not to notice how blue his eyes were the closer she got to him. Really, very bluey-blue. Had they always been such a bright color? Or was it only when they were aimed directly at her?

No!
She slammed her eyes shut and turned the other way.
That’s a childish thought, juvenile, the foolish daydream of a silly teenager who knows nothing—and I’m done with that. I just won’t look at him all day. No problem.

She unlocked the door, pushed inside, dropped her purse on the workbench, and went straight for her lab coat.

“Speaking of yesterday…” Luke said while putting on his coat beside her. “Should we talk about it?”

“Um, no.” She exhaled a laugh/scoff combo as she fingered her hair into a ponytail. “That’s the last thing I need.”

“Why?”

“Because we need to be professional. This is work—really, really important work—and I can’t allow myself to be distracted.”

“Is my being here distracting you?”

She still wouldn’t look at him. “Yes.”

“But I haven’t done anything. I’m just standing here.”

Right!
she wanted to say.
And that’s enough!

While thinking about distractions, she got sucked into a memory of the way he’d turned to her right before the kiss. Then his mouth had covered hers, his lips everywhere. Natalie knew darn well if they hadn’t been confined on that ride—never mind the broken lap bar—she wouldn’t have stopped with
only
a kiss.

Knowing she was capable of that, that Luke’s mouth and hands and aftershave were capable of making her completely lose herself in a split-second made him dangerous…to her career, the clinical trial for Muff, and to her heart. She’d never really gotten over being rejected by Luke—when she’d been too young to know how to build a brick wall to keep out the boy who was sure to break her heart.

Well, that brick wall was in place now.

“Thought we had a deal,” Luke said, stirring her awake. “You’re already breaking your side of the bargain.”

Finally, she looked at him. “How?”

He pointed at her. “No biting your lip.”

She hadn’t been aware she was doing it. Or had she done it subconsciously because he’d admitted it made him want to kiss her?

No. She’d never been into head games. In her experience, guys were the big teases, making promises they didn’t keep, painting pictures of a future they’d never have, disappointing her, not putting her first. Not remembering her name…