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It’s not like they haven’t kissed before. They have, several times. The first few times involved playing a cover, and while they’ve still occasionally done that, somehow they’ve segued into kisses becoming something more personal, more private. Over the past several months, there have been brief brushes of their lips after dinner or a hug, gentle kisses on the cheek that have sometimes lingered for a moment, an increased frequency in his tendency to raise her hand to his lips while their eyes meet. They’ve been heading in this direction for a while, and they’ve both been aware of it.
Still, it’s a surprise to find himself finally, finally, kissing Amanda this way. On the lips, and with no intention of pulling back quickly to satisfy propriety or circumstances. Her mouth is cool under his, soft and sweet, everything he’s thought it might be and more. Lee finds himself becoming intoxicated. He doesn’t mind. It’s not a bad thing. He wonders how often they might be able to do this again, now that they’ve made it across the threshold.
And then her lips part under his, and he’s done thinking. There are only sensations now: the sound of her soft, breathy moans and the gentle vibration in his throat that tells him she’s not the only one reacting that way. The way her perfume smells, flowery and sweet and subtle enough to mix with the underlying scent that is uniquely hers. The taste of the orange they’d shared during their afternoon follow-up meetings. The silky texture of her hair under his fingers, the heat of her skin he can feel through her blouse as he pulls her closer, the pressure from her hands as they slip across his shoulders and neck.
He’s drowning in feeling and touch and pleasure, in this incredible presence that’s Amanda, a presence he’d never imagined even in his dreams. He’s not alone: when the kiss comes to its conclusion and they lean their foreheads together, they’re both short of breath.
“Wow,” she whispers. “I liked that.”
“Me, too,” he replies. He’s had his share of kisses, but he’s never been so deeply affected by one.
Their lips meet again, tender and easy, quicker kisses but full of promise as he gently tugs her over toward the couch. Once there, he guides her down onto his lap, and the kiss they exchange this time is deeper, longer, more open and with unmistakable, if muted, heat. Her hands slide under his coat, roaming his back as he nips his way down the side of her neck to the hollow of her throat. He lingers there for a long moment, tasting her skin, and there’s a throb in her voice when she murmurs his name. The sound calls him back to her mouth for another one of those incredible kisses, one that leaves him without any ability to form words when it ends.
She’s able to speak, though, and he notices a vague tension in her back. “Lee. Are you — do you — will you want to —”
“Yes,” he breathes against her mouth. A truer word might never have been spoken.
Now she stiffens in earnest, bringing him all the way out of his reverie. “I…I can’t — I don’t — that’s not the kind of person I —”
He lays a finger over her lips before she can go further. “Shh-h-h. I know.” His hands move to cradle her face, his eyes meeting hers. “I do want to make love with you. When the time’s right.” He kisses her again, gently, as a promise. “Not until then.” He couldn’t bear to lose her over moving too fast. He’s already waited this long, and the wait has been more than worth it. He can stop and linger here, right where they are now. He wants to lose himself in her again, to delight in the way she looks and feels and tastes when they’re together like this, and he moves to kiss her again.
But she pulls away, just far enough to let one of her hands come up to touch his face for a long moment. He hopes he never forgets the look of wonder that has dawned in her eyes, that she can see the same wonder in his own. And she must, because after that pause she begins to lean back down, her lips moving toward his —
— just as the telephone on his desk starts to ring.
Amanda’s head falls forward onto his shoulder as she starts laughing into his neck. “There’s always something.”
“Of course there is.” But he’s laughing, too, as she slides off his lap. He picks up the line at her desk, just after the call rolls over to that phone. “Stetson.”
To his surprise, Billy apologizes for calling so late in the day first, before starting in on the latest update. She hands him pencil and paper so he can take notes, but when she begins to move away he cradles the handset against his shoulder and reaches out with his right hand. He’s not ready to let her get too far away just yet. There’s something else he still needs to say, and mercifully, their Section Leader keeps the conversation short.
After he hangs up the phone, Lee pulls Amanda back toward him, resting his hands at her waist. “I’d like to take you out tonight.”
She hesitates, and in that moment it hits him. They’d been out late the night before, cleaning up the details after their crazy sojourn on stage during Tony Martinet’s play. He’d overheard Amanda’s family asking why she couldn’t go home with them then — the actors had already been dismissed — but she’d been firm about staying, and just as firm about not explaining the true situation. He’d tried to make the mop-up as quick as he could, but it had still been nearly midnight when he’d dropped her off near her house.
“Or,” he continues, “we could do it tomorrow night.”
The look of abject relief on her face confirms his earlier guess, and she goes up on tiptoe to kiss him again. It’s slow and sweet, lingering, and by the time they’re done his entire body is vibrating. He knows he needs to let go. He doesn’t want to let go.
“I’m only leaving for now,” Amanda breathes. “Only until tomorrow night.”
Lee smiles. “Pick you up at six?”
“Six? That’s a bit early, isn’t it?”
His smile deepens. “I have something in mind.” He’d stumbled across it months ago and has just been waiting for the right time.
At that, her eyebrows go up, but it’s over an expression of mirth. “Well, all right then. I suppose I’ll see you then.”
She picks up her purse, ready to go, but he can’t resist the temptation to draw her into one more slow kiss. He could get used to this. He wants to get used to this, and if the look on her face is any indication, he’s not the only one. Her hands are warm in his for a long moment after they’re done, and when she turns to go it’s with a look of regret.
“Amanda,” he calls out to her just as she reaches the door, and she stops and turns to look at him.
Lee can still feel the smile on his face. “Dress for dinner. You’ll probably also want a wrap.”
“Really?”
“Really,” he confirms. “You’ll find out why tomorrow.”
She chuckles softly, and in this shared moment he understands that without needing to ask, too. She’s already going to be humming with anticipation, just as much as he will, and that’s only going to be heightened by her curiosity. But she trusts him, so she doesn’t ask, instead favoring him with the smile he’s only seen once before, last month, on her patio. Just after he’d pulled her into a different kiss.
Once the door closes, he picks up the phone and gets to work. It’s going to be a perfect date. He won’t consider anything less.