RE: And this

We slammed our car doors shut at the same time, flinging water droplets onto the dash and inside of the windshield. Panting from the run across the parking lot, I laughed, “How does that happen? You go into a movie in the afternoon, and it’s a beautiful, sunshiny day. You come out an hour and a half later to black skies and a thunderstorm!”

“I don’t know, but I love it.”

The husky tenor of his voice made me snap my head to the left. Our eyes locked for a second. I cleared my throat and drew my fingers under my eyes to wipe the moisture and what I figured were some scary mascara rings away.

I started shaking my head side to side like a dog, my soaked hair releasing some of the rain. My heart started to beat a bit more slowly, my breath slowing.

“Don’t do that,” he ordered.

“Well, I’m sorry, but I’m not going to get your interior any more wet than it already is,” I snapped.

“That’s not it.”

I could barely hear him over the rain pounding on the roof of the car. I stared at the sheets running down the windshield for one, two, three slamming heartbeats, then turned toward him again, pushing my hair off my face.

His back was pressed to the car door, his legs rigid. Every part of him was still except his eyes, which flicked back and forth, looking into my right, then my left eye, then down to my lips.

I squirmed onto my side. How was I going to get over the infernal armrest?
As I swung up on one knee, he pushed forward, till I could feel his breath on my face. Gently, I pulled him the last few inches to me. As our lips met, a shiver went through him and his stillness disappeared. Both his hands went to my neck, my face, and he kissed me deeply. His mouth was different from what I had imagined, softer. I mimicked him; wherever he put his hands on me, I did on him, gently scratching the back of his neck with my nails as we explored with our tongues.

I had to get over that damned armrest. “Scooch over this way.”

He shifted his hips toward me and I swung myself over, miraculously just fitting into the available space. The steering wheel jutting into my back, I strained closer.

He clutched my back, chuckling, “This is ridiculous.”

“Yeah … oh crap … ow … my back … completely.” I held his face, kissing his eyes, nose and lips as my hair fell down around us. “It’s just like I imagined it.”