Out of breath and needing some air, she pulled back and looked at him.

His lips were swollen and curved into a smile. Pupils dilated. Skin flushed. He leaned forward, chasing the connection she’d broken. She grinned.

“Fucking hell,” he murmured. “I should have promised to never make an honest woman out of you a long time ago. Are you sure, Ree?” He rested his head on hers.

She nodded, tilting her chin up to kiss him again.

“I haven’t been able to think straight all week,” he said, once they broke free again. “I want you. All of you, in every way. I want you in my home. I want you with me in my kitchen. I want you in my bed.” He let his hands fall back to her hips. “But I’m okay if you want to go slow here. Or stop altogether.”

She considered it for about two seconds before she giggled. “I’ve already slept in your bed. You’ve searched for bugs in my hair. We’ve managed to have both an arranged and a fake engagement. Not to mention the things you did with my feet. I’m not sure slow is possible.” She leaned forward and nipped at his neck.

He laughed. Grinning, she finally took the opportunity to get her tongue into that dimple. She nibbled and licked her way back to his lips.

His hands tightened. “So, you’re saying …”

“Do you have condoms?”

His smile nearly split his face in two. “Yes.”

“Then take me to bed, Nadim.”

He beamed. “Gladly.” In one smooth movement, he grasped her bottom and stood, barely letting go of her lips as he walked her over to the pink four-poster bed.

It turned out that talent while making out on her couch or his living room floor easily predicted talent in a bed, too. Granted it had been a long time, but twelve boyfriends and a handful of casual hookups had left Reena feeling pretty confident at judging sexual prowess. She tended to categorize first times as either: wow, potential to become wow, awkward, or nope. For Nadim, she needed a new category. Something between wow and holy crap wow.

“Sweet mother of God … ” he said, collapsing on top of her afterward, arms straining to keep his weight off her.

She laughed, pushing him off her. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“It was fully intended as one,” he said into his pillow.

“I’ll be back.” She hopped out of bed to use his bathroom because she wanted a UTI like she wanted a nuclear winter. While in the bathroom, she looked at her face in the mirror.

Hair a mess. Neck reddened with friction irritation. And a goofy smile plastered on her face. Not a trace of regret.

He got up after she returned, presumably to clean up and dispose of the condom, before they settled back in his bed.

She smiled, nuzzling her cheek in his satiny sheets. “You have excellent sheets, by the way.”