Annika shrugged and looked into the water, rippling from a slight breeze. “Seriously. It’s been nothing more than a string of first dates or random encounters.”

Hudson set his elbows on his knees and grunted.

“What?” Annika asked, feeling defensive. “What’s that grunt supposed to mean?”

Hudson looked deep into her eyes. “I guess I just find that kind of hard to believe.” He said it reluctantly. Was he afraid of offending her?

Annika didn’t look away. “Why?”

The silence between them stretched, and then melted and morphed into something interesting. Annika was suddenly aware that the tips of their toes were touching. That they were completely alone in this very romantic courtyard. That the margaritas she’d drunk over the course of the night were still swimming along happily in her bloodstream, transforming the world into a glowing, sparkling phantasmagoria of romantic opportunity, inhibiting every good-decision-making neurotransmitter in her brain.

“The same reason I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Vegas,” Hudson said quietly, dipping his head to look into her eyes.

Annika glanced down. “Oh, stop it.” She was going for nonchalance, but her voice was a little shaky.

Hudson pressed the tips of his fingers into the back of her hand for just a moment. Her heart hammered against her chest like a pitiful, confused bird. “Tell me you haven’t thought about it.” His voice wasn’t the least bit shaky. Annika would’ve felt annoyed if she weren’t so breathlessly, ridiculously nervous.

She met his eyes then, and the blood roared in her ears at the memories that wanted to surface. “Maybe a little,” she said, her voice just a breath in the balmy night air. If he kisses me, I’ll kiss him back, she thought. She wasn’t sure whether to blame the starlit night, or the glimmers of deep kindness she’d gotten from him when he gave the gummy bears to the homeless man, or the fact that he’d said her energy when she talked about Make Up was “electric,” or the way he was staring at her right then. I want to kiss him. Right here, right now.

He continued to stare into her eyes, the moment building and building until her blood was lava and she couldn’t take it anymore. Annika reached a hand forward, her fingertips grazing the corner of his mouth. His eyes closed as he let out a long, slow breath.

Taking that as encouragement, Annika leaned forward, her pulse pounding so loudly she was sure he could hear it. And then, softly, surely, she pressed her mouth to his.