Amanda leaned forward, making it clear that was exactly what she wanted. Her eyes slid closed just as their lips met. Before, there was kissing, but it was that sort of anonymous stranger kissing. Good, fun, but almost as a formality. This kiss felt different, more intense. The payoff for a day of discreet flirting when she wished she could do so much more. She knew she couldn’t keep Sam, but she gave herself permission to enjoy this kiss.

She took all the moments she needed to savor the soft, perfect fullness of his lips. She didn’t shy away from the way his tongue slid into her mouth and brushed against hers. She only stopped his hand from moving farther up her thigh when her phone started buzzing incessantly on the bed.

Amanda pulled back, breaking the warm connection between them.

“I should grab that. It could be my mom. One second.”

“Yeah,” Sam said as he let out a deep breath. The way he scrubbed his hand over his face as she walked over to the bed sent a little tingle over Amanda’s chest. She was glad she wasn’t the only one affected by the kiss. Amanda reached for her phone, dread draining the joy from her body as Dru’s name scrolled across the screen. She silenced the ringer, then turned back to Sam. There was no way she was answering with him still in the room.

“I hate to do this, but I have to take this. My friend is—”

“No. Absolutely.” Sam cleared his throat, then stood carefully. He failed to hide the erection pressing against the seams of his pants. Later, when she wasn’t dreading a conversation with Dru in front of him, she’d be flattered by the presence of it. She watched him as he came around the back of the couch and kissed her on the cheek. When he pulled back, there was an intensity to his eyes, something she wanted focused on her the next time she found herself under him. And there would be a next time. One last time before she had to turn back to her real life.

“Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow.”

He leaned closer again and kissed her one more time on the lips. “Get some sleep. ’Cause tomorrow, we’re going to wear this bed out.”

A burst of laughter came from Amanda’s mouth as he backed toward the door. “Okay. Then. I’ll make sure I stretch too.”

“Night.”

“Good night, Sam.” He grabbed his hat off the hook with a wink, then slipped out the door.