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touching yet. Then he moved ever so slightly so that his mouth pressed against hers. Soft, but firm.
    There was restraint in the hand that held her waist. His fingers on her skin, even over the cotton of her T-shirt, seemed to brand his prints on her. Making her burn. His grasp was strong, but not imprisoning.
    His lips brushed hers again, softly, without pressure. He made no move to deepen the kiss or rush anything. It was simple and yet so sensual. The warmth in her belly began to spread through her blood, bubbling hotter and faster. Making her aware of every nerve ending on her body, but everything homed in on the one spot where their breath mixed together.
    She wanted more. She wanted to deepen the kiss.
    For an instant, his thumb pressed harder against her waist, and she could sense him struggling with his control. His lips trembled against hers and then, in a surprising move, he caught her bottom lip between both of his and sucked lightly.
    Shock and pleasure jolted through her, and she whimpered, swaying against him. She needed more. Her lips parted and she leaned forward, but he’d already pulled away.
    Dazed, she blinked her eyes open. It took a moment for her vision to adjust to the streetlights that held the nighttime darkness at bay.
    “Thank you for taking me to dinner, Kenzie,” he murmured, tracing his fingers down her jawline, ever so lightly.
    “You actually paid for it.” Oh shite, her voice sounded like she’d swallowed a squeak toy. “Thank you.”
    He gave another smile, the one that had all those little butterflies coming to life in her stomach. In the artificial lighting, she could see the lingering heat in his gaze and something else. Some kind of hesitancy.
    He truly wasn’t going to try to convince her to go to bed with him tonight. That fact in combination with how amazing the evening had been was making it harder to find a reason to not want to see him again.
    Brett was a good guy. And she needed to start dating. Delonna was right. She really, really needed to put her arse out there.
    And that kiss…whoa.
    “I work tomorrow night, you should come in and see me. I’ll likely hook you up with some shepherd’s pie.”
    Wow, that was quite bold of her, wasn’t it? Channeling some vintage Kenzie, she was. Biting her lip to hide a smile, she reached into her purse for her keys.
    “Sounds good. Have a good night, Kenzie.”
    “You too.”
    He was rather sweet, waiting until she’d climbed into her car and driven off. Only then did she see in her rearview that he made his way to a big pickup truck in the corner of the lot.
    This was good. She’d met a decent guy and he was the perfect person to jump feet-first back into the dating game with.
    It didn’t have to be serious. Honestly, she didn’t know if she even wanted serious while she finished up her degree.
    But she was putting herself out there, and it was about time.
     
     
    Brett maneuvered his Dodge Ram into a spot at the pub. The place was already packed even though it was a Sunday night. Maybe because there was a Seahawks game on and McLaughlin’s Pub had a couple massive flat screens throughout.
    It all sounded pretty awesome actually. The game, a couple beers, shepherd’s pie and a beautiful girl he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about.
    He’d gone all out this afternoon. Taking an extra-long shower and finally opening his bottle of Marc Jacobs aftershave. It had been a gift from his sister at Christmas, sitting unused in his bathroom until today. Not much for designer things, he figured his under $10 bottle was absolutely fine and he’d hold off on the pricey stuff until he ran out.
    But today he saw the appeal in the designer brand. Felt the difference. Actually, he figured he smelled pretty damn good right now. And getting dressed, he hadn’t put that much thought into what to wear since, well, maybe never.
    To top it all off, he was nervous. Like he was about to go on some kind of first date in high school or