She intended to give him a peck on the lips, but Gray had other ideas. Before she could step away, he locked his arms around her and pulled her against him, taking control of their kiss.
After awhile, he ended the kiss and Kiera sighed. Even though her eyes remained closed, Gray’s rapid breathing and the erection she left pressing against her told her he was affected by their kiss, too.
“Now might be a good time to frost those cupcakes.” His hands traveled lower and slipped into her back pockets.
Kiera couldn’t agree more. She needed some space between them. Opening her eyes, she found him looking at her. “I think you’re right. Do you want to help?”
Gray nodded.
“Then we’re going to need to move. We can’t do anything like this.”
Gray cocked an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t say that.”
Kiera pictured them kissing again. “You know what I mean.” She took a step backward, which forced Gray to pull his hands from her pockets. “If you do a good job, I’ll even let you lick the extra frosting from the bowl.”
She turned back to the counter and gave the frosting one final stir before picking up a cupcake.
“You’re a slave driver.”
“I’m serious when it comes to cupcakes. Now, get to work my friend.”
“Whatever you say.” Gray came up alongside her and kissed her before he accepted the frosting spatula she handed him. “Did Boston really trade Quinn? He was the ace in their pitching rotation.”
As they fell into a rhythm, Kiera shared what she’d heard about the changes Boston had made to their baseball team. While not an overzealous fan who had to watch every game, she, like most New Englanders, was a Red Sox fan.
“Keep doing such a good job, and I’ll let you in my kitchen again.” She stopped working and watched Gray frost the cupcake in his hand.
Gray put down the cupcake he held and put his arm around her. “And what would you have me doing?” He kissed her jaw and then traced a path toward her ear.
Excitement zinged through her as he sucked on her earlobe. “You’ll just have to wait and see.” She could picture them doing so many things in the kitchen, and none of them involved cooking.
“I like the sound of that.”
Kiera left one cupcake behind, but wrapped the rest on the plate. While she loved sweets, she tried to maintain a healthy diet. If the cupcakes stayed with her, they’d only go stale. She doubted that would happen if Gray took them home.
“Here. You can enjoy the rest later.” She handed Gray the plate. He’d spent the entire day at her place, but when she started to fall asleep on the couch, he’d announced it was time for him to go.
Gray zipped up his leather jacket. “Trust me, I plan to.” He accepted the plate, but set it down. “What time should I pick you up tomorrow?” He put his arms around her.
“The rink opens at ten o’clock, but I can meet you there. It doesn’t make much sense for you to drive here just to drive back to Providence later.”
“I have a better idea. How about I pick you up at nine, we grab some breakfast, and then head to the rink?”
If he wanted to go out of his way, that was his business. “I’ll be ready for nine.”
Gray gave her a final kiss, then grabbed his cupcakes, and left.
“Wow.” Kiera leaned against the closed door. She hadn’t kissed a guy like that in forever. She’d shared a few brief kisses with the blind dates her friends set her up with since her return, but nothing like the ice-melting, steam-producing ones she’d shared with Gray today.
And tomorrow there might be more. Hopefully, she wouldn’t evaporate during one of them.
Kiera closed her eyes. The man kissed like someone who’d had way too much practice. She knew Gray liked to party, but she’d never considered him a playboy. That honor belonged to Trent and Jake. Maybe she’d been wrong. Maybe he was both a party animal and a playboy. After all, no one mastered any skill, whether it be playing an instrument or, in this case, kissing, without plenty of practice.
Pushing away from the door, Kiera opened her eyes. If he’d mastered kissing so well, had he also mastered other skills?
An image of Gray, naked in her bed, materialized in her head. She’d never been one to sit and fantasize, but after the afternoon she’d spent with Gray, who could blame her?
“Stop. Right. There.” She forced the image away and walked up the stairs to the loft. After removing her sweatshirt, she pulled on a clean t-shirt.
She was fantasizing about Gray. A guy she’d known her entire life. A man way out of her league. She had a better chance of opening her own chain of restaurants tomorrow than having anything come from this weekend. Besides, they might spend tomorrow together and decide they couldn’t stand each other.