| 17 |

~ Banks Woods ~

The whole time while working, I can't fight the blush off my face that keeps creeping up. Every time I remember today's kiss, it's like my body can't help but give a little excited jump.

Kaylee notices my behaviour, obviously. Nothing escapes her eyes. We're both having massive hangovers but my good mood fights it off. Meanwhile, Kaylee grumbles frequently, massaging her head and downing four cups of coffee herself.

When afternoon hits, Lance is right on time, striding inside the cafe with a huge smile as if he's destined to make everyone's day better. His eyes immediately meet mine and I curse myself when heat spreads to my cheeks. He walks in my direction.

"Hi." He smiles when he stops in front of me with the counter in between us.

I don't know why I suddenly feel awkward as I wrap an arm around my middle, giving him a little smile of my own. "Hey."

His gaze falls on my mouth and his eyes turn warmer. "Am I still banned from complimenting you?"

I nod.

"Ah, fuck."

I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from smiling.

Before any of us can say something, Kaylee slides up to my side. "Okay, you two, spill."

We look at her.

"Don't give me that look. I know something happened between you two because this girl right here has been red in the face since this morning."

"No, I haven't." I elbow her.

"Mhmm. Yeah. Sure. What's going on? Did you two do the deed?"

"Kaylee!" My face flames.

"Did you at least try one of the positions I came up with—"

I grab her shoulder and drag her away, leading her to the kitchen. Lance's chuckle follows after me.

Once we're safely hidden from those warm blue eyes, I turn my furious ones at Kaylee.

"Can you not make things any more awkward?"

"It was awkward?" Kaylee raises an eyebrow. "Hun, you were the only one who looked shy while Lance looked like he wanted to bottle you up for himself."

I place my hands on my face. "Just, stop. I'm already freaking out about how to act in front of him."

"You know, if you tell me what happened, I can help you out. Don't leave out the details!"

"We...kissed," I admit, shyly.

She furrows her eyebrows. "And?"

I shrug. "Nothing. We just kissed."

Kaylee keeps a blank face as if considering something. "Okay...what type of kiss?"

"What do you mean?"

"Describe what happened in the kiss."

My body tingles with the memories that appear in my mind. The way he held my nape, my waist, my thighs. The way he ground his hips into me to show me how much he enjoyed it. The way he sucked my tongue into his mouth and bit it—

"You're red again, so I'm guessing it was a really good kiss."

It was. He's a really good kisser too.

I nod.

"So now you're here feeling all shy and awkward?"

I nod again.

"Fine. I'll help you."

"Help how?"

"Wait here for just a second." Saying that she walks out of the kitchen, leaving me confused.

The confusion soon dissipates into shock though when Lance walks in a moment later.

My heart starts beating faster at the sight of his tall figure filling up the space. He's dressed elegantly in a dark blue suit and his hair is styled so that a few strands fall onto his forehead. He looks straight out of a movie and looks too perfect. Way too perfect for me.

"W-where's Kaylee?"

The corner of his mouth lifts. "She said I need to come in here and give you a kiss."

What?

The shock of his words doesn't even register in my brain when he starts moving towards me. Even though he's moving slowly, time seems to be running fast and soon he's right in front of me, making me arch my neck and meet his eyes.

"Are you going to punch me?" He asks, his eyes hooded and heavy. Our chests brush against each other

I furrow my eyebrows. "No."

"Good to know."

I'm about to ask him why but before I can he dips his head and claims my lips. My lips part open in surprise and he uses that moment to slip his tongue inside my mouth. His arm wraps around my waist to pull me closer and the other holds my nape.

I'm still expecting a gentle, calm kiss but a moan escapes my lips when his tongue strokes mine, unhurriedly and deep. My fingers clutch his shoulders to keep myself up. Heat spreads to every part of my stomach as if I'm being burned by him. His thumb finds my skin on the side of my waist, rubbing it in a circular motion. My brain stops functioning trying to steady myself against the slow languid strokes of his tongue on mine.

My stomach pools with desire with how he takes what he wants. His teeth nip my bottom lip and another moan falls from my mouth. I return the gesture by sliding my tongue against his lower lip.

"Fuck." I hear him murmur.

He continues kissing me, taking his own sweet time as if he doesn't have to run back to work within five minutes before his dad whoops his ass. When we can't kiss any longer because there's this thing called oxygen, he slowly leans his head away.

My lips immediately feel cold and empty as I open my eyes to meet his hooded, half-open eyes. His arms are still around me and my hands are on his shoulders. A cocoon of warmth surrounds us that I don't want to let go of. Apparently, he doesn't either because instead of letting me go, his hand tightens on my waist.

For a beat, none of us says anything, quietly breathing the same air and gazing at each other's faces. My lips feel swollen and tender and his look red.

I open my mouth to ask him what now, but the sound of an alarm blazes the air.

"Fuck no." Lance groans loudly, pulling out his phone and answering the call. "Yes, Dad?"

Even on the phone call, he doesn't loosen his hold around me, tucking me into him as if he doesn't want me to leave. I can hear some very descriptive scolding from the other side of the phone as Lance politely replies while apologizing a hundred times.

When he's done with the call, he slips his phone back into his pocket. "Dad wants me back ASAP, or guess who's working till two A.M?"

Disappointment makes my lips pull down but I still pat his chest. "You should go then."

"I'm considering if it's worth working extra just to be here."

Butterflies erupt in my stomach. Even though I want him to stay—and do God knows what—I don't want him to be working extra because of me.

So I shake my head, pulling away from his hold. "Go. We'll see each other again."

A smile lifts his lips and he tucks my hair behind my ear. "You're right, we will."

I give a small smile in return, and we walk out of the kitchen. Customers are bustling in like honeybees and I spot Kaylee trying to juggle six cups of coffee. I instantly feel bad for making her work alone but whatever, she was the one who sent Lance inside knowing full well, we wouldn't be coming out any time soon.

Lance doesn't let go of my hand until the last second.

"I'll see you tonight?" He asks.

I nod.

"Great." Then he quickly kisses my forehead, catching me off-guard. I don't get to say anything before he waves at me and rushes out of the cafe.

●・○・●・○・●

The next day, Lance comes by again to get his coffee in the afternoon. While I was busy in the kitchen, he invited himself inside and held me against the wall before plunging his tongue into my mouth. The intensity of his kisses always surprises me even though we've kissed nearly five times.

I love the way he holds my waist in that firm grip of his and locks my head in place so that he can kiss me deeper. I love the way he pulls me so close to him that there's not an inch of space between us. It still feels like a dream. When he pulls away, I nearly sigh in disappointment.

He's getting me addicted to his kisses and I'm falling right into it. My chest heaves along with his as he smooths my hair down after messing it during the kiss.

"It's like I can't get enough of you." He mutters, running his thumb over the curve of my face.

My face tints red. I pat his chest. "Sucks to be you, buddy. I'll get your coffee before your dad calls again."

He narrows his eyes. "Did you have to remind me of him?"

"Do you want to get your ass beaten?"

He grumbles under his breath, letting go of me before dragging himself outside. I smile as I make him his coffee, putting in some extra effort today and trying to make the Van Gogh painting look something like one of his actual paintings.

When I carry the coffee outside, the sight in front of me makes me halt in my tracks.

Lance is seated at his usual table that he claimed for himself. That's not the thing that caught my attention though. It's the girl who's sitting right beside him. She's leaning in way too close to him with her curled blonde hair and long lashes.

Lance tries leaning back but he's already practically glued to the wall behind him. He's telling her something, looking polite and the girl edges towards him.

Something hot and heavy explodes in my stomach as I walk towards them. Lance catches my eye and relief spreads over his features. I slam his coffee cup down on the table, spilling a hell lot of it.

The girl startles, looking up at me. "Could you be any more gentler?"

I frown at her. "Did you give your order yet?"

"No. I'm still deciding."

"Well, can you hurry up? The place is getting packed and we want to make space for other people too."

An annoyed look slides on her face. "Yeah, sure." She mutters. She looks back at Lance, whispering to him. "What's her problem?"

I open my mouth to tell her exactly what my problem is but then Lance says something that stuns me into silence.

"She's my girlfriend."

Even the blonde girl looks surprised. For a moment, we both stare at him, making sure we didn't just imagine what came out of his mouth.

"Girlfriend?" The blonde girl breaks the silence first, frowning. "Are you serious?"

He nods. "Now if you'll please excuse us and leave."

She whips her head around, staring at me up and down, before glancing back at Lance. "Please tell me this is a joke."

"Are you going to order or not?" I ask, impatiently tapping my foot.

She gets up with a huff, picking up her bag and carrying herself to the cash counter. I glare after her the whole time.

A touch on my hand brings me back. I look at Lance and turn my glare towards him. His grin immediately drops.

"Why...are you giving me that look?" He asks.

"Do not let other girls flirt with you," I demand.

"But I wasn't—"

"No. Shut them up before they get too close to you like that."

"I was getting to that."

I cross my arms against my chest. I know it isn't his fault but I'm mad. I don't even know why. Is it because I already lost a man to another girl in the past? Is it because I'm scared of it happening again? I always concealed all my emotions with anger.

Blowing out a breath, I urge myself to calm down. Then my eyes widen when I remember something.

"Girlfriend?"

He looks sheepish, rubbing the back of his neck. "The most efficient way to get rid of other girls."

"You know that still doesn't stop them, right?" Purely speaking from experience from the past. Fuck Ben and Brenna.

"It's still efficient in more ways than you can count." He shrugs. "Now that we have touched on that subject, what do you say?"

"About what?"

"Becoming my girlfriend." 

"Wow, you do not waste any time, do you?" I ask, even though my stomach flutters at the thought.

"Why waste any when life's too short? I'm a man who takes what I want. I realize the value of time."

"You're very cocky too."

"For good reasons." He waves me off. "Anyways. So...?"

"You're not gonna back down even after I say no, so why ask?" I place a hand to my forehead.

He shrugs. "I like hearing you say yes."

I roll my eyes.

"You still haven't answered me."

"You already know the answer." I narrow my eyes.

"But I want you to say it." He steeples his fingers under his chin, staring up at me. "I'm waiting, you know?"

"You know the answer. Why do you want me to say it?"

"Because I like hearing your voice."

"You're hearing it now."

"I'll like it even more when I hear 'Yes, I'll be your girlfriend'."

I roll my eyes again. "You're annoying, you know that?"

"I've been told. Now tell me."

"Tell you what?" I play.

He narrows his eyes. "You know what I wanna hear."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't. Enlighten me."

He cocks up an eyebrow. "You sure you wanna play this with me? I can go like this all day and all night—"

He gets cut off when his phone starts ringing. A sigh of exasperation escapes his mouth while I bite my lip to stop myself from laughing.

"Yes, Dad?" He speaks into the phone. "Can you give me like, five more minutes? Someone's being difficult right now and I'm handling...No. No. Of course not. Fuck. Fine, alright! I'll be there! I'll be there!"

He yanks the phone off his ear, scowling.

"Gotto go?" I tease.

He glares at me. "I'll be coming back and you know that."

A laugh finally escapes my mouth and I lift a shoulder. "Whatever."

"I'm not kidding." He stands up, gathering his stuff and his coffee. "When I return, I'm not leaving without hearing you say those words."

"You can try." I challenge.

"Oh, you bet I will."

●・○・●・○・●  

That fucker did make me say it. Not only did he make me say it but he even made me repeat it three more times.

He had dinner at my place again, pretending to like my food even though I know it tasted like crap. The moment Caleb called it a night and went to bed, Lance's hands were on me, tugging me to him and claiming my mouth as his.

He made me say it then when he kissed my "brattiness" away and looked smug about finally making me his girlfriend. I would've argued until death but whatever. I can give him that. Just for this once though. It's also because I secretly might've wanted him to keep calling me his girlfriend. The word gives a rush of butterflies in my stomach.

I know I'm falling in way too fast and that I need to keep my emotions in check. But something about Lance makes me want to trust again. To let down a part of me even though I'm shit scared of falling into that black hole again. I know deep within my heart that if Lance were to suddenly drop me, I wouldn't recover from it.

With Ben, it was different because he was an asshole so it's easy to blame him. But if Lance leaves me...I can't help but put all the blame on myself for not being sufficient enough.

So even though I'm allowing myself to feel the joy of being with him, I'm still encasing my heart in thick metal shackles to prevent myself from completely hurting.

✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

A short chapter because the next one is going to have some drama ;)

I did not realize how fast I got Banks and Lance together until I started editing the chapters. Is it too fast or just right? Let me know! How does their relationship feel like to you guys right now?

Words: 2,600

Date of publishing: 25th June 2024