“Yeah,” he said, snaking an arm around her waist to pull her closer.

Her body tensed. “W-what are you doing, Adam?”

“I’m going to kiss you,” he told her. “Just once.”

She blinked in shock, as if he’d told her that he was going to make her eat a live cricket. Her breathing quickened. “W-what do you mean?”

“If you want to make Josh jealous, then you’re going to have to step up your game.”

Worry creased her forehead. “By kissing you?”

“Yes,” he stated, knowing that he was trying to win her over. But she wanted Josh, and Adam was going to show her why that wasn’t her correct match. If this didn’t work, then at least he’d have this one kiss to remember her by. “I’m going to kiss you now.”

She drew back slightly, her eyes wide in disbelief. “Okay,” she agreed, although there was still hesitation in her tone.

His gaze fell to her lips, and he hoped like hell she understood what he was about to do and didn’t full-out deck him in front of everyone. Even though he probably deserved it between the bet and getting himself involved in her relationship with Josh. He really needed to learn to stop while he was behind.

Tomorrow, he thought. He’d learn that lesson tomorrow. Because right now, he had something more pressing to do. Something he’d been wanting to do for the past month.

Adam moved his face slowly toward hers as she watched him from beneath her long, dark lashes. Just thinking about kissing her sent a flash of heat swirling in his gut.

But before he could kiss her, she leaned forward and kissed his cheek with a quick peck. It wasn’t at all a sexual kiss. More like a thank-you kiss you would give your grandma for the ugly Christmas sweater she’d knitted you. Which wasn’t at all what he’d planned.

He scowled. “What the hell was that?”

“Um, a friendly kiss?”

Yeah, fuck that. Because it wasn’t nearly enough. Which was strange. In his experience, putting off cravings usually lessened or weakened the strength of desire behind them. But that rule of thumb apparently didn’t apply to this woman. Because he was going to kiss her his way…and there would be nothing friendly about it.

Adam grasped the back of her head and angled it to the side. His eyes dusted over her pale pink lips, watching her lick them nervously. Then he lowered his head and covered her mouth with his. It was like touching a live wire. Of all the women he’d kissed in the past, never before had this much electricity shot through his system.