Camel riding with Jack was easily one of the best experiences of Lana's life. She was also grateful that Jack at least got a taste of a normal camel before they finished the tour. It went on a little longer than Lana originally wanted, but she was so getting used to Jack's arms wrapped around her and the way he tickled her anytime she made fun of his camel-riding abilities.

After the tour, they went back to the riad to freshen up for their dinner plans. Jack came out of the bathroom dressed up and ready to go in a white button-down top and dark jeans. He looked good. Really good. And Lana stared as he rummaged around his bag for his watch.

He looked up, and she quickly looked away, cheeks hot, feeling like she was just caught ogling, yet again, at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a grin form on his face. Now he was staring at her.

"What?" Lana said as her eyes met his.

"Nothing." He continued to smile. "You look really beautiful tonight."

"Oh," she managed to say. "Thank you."

"Ready to go?"

"Yes! I'm starving!"

Jack grabbed Lana's hand like it was completely natural for them to be holding hands, walking through the old city toward the restaurant. Like nothing weird at all was happening inside her stomach when his fingers intertwined with hers.

They had not said anything at all to each other, but it felt like they had this unspoken connection. The only thing was, she didn't know how to bring up the topic with Jack. She hoped he felt the same way about her, but she wasn't sure why he hadn't said anything yet or even asked her to re-think the friend proposal.

The restaurant was just as nice as the riad. A heavy-set Moroccan man whose smile could brighten anyone's day welcomed them in. He guided them up the stairs to the rooftop terrace. Lana guessed it wasn't a popular night to go out as there was only one other party there—two women who looked like they were almost done with their food.

As the man led them to their table, the dusk sky washed a carefree feeling over Lana. The view was breathtaking, and the sun setting made it more beautiful. "Wow, you have a really lovely view."

"Thank you," said the jolly man. "Would you like for me take picture?" His thick accent was evident through his wide smile.

"Um, sure." Lana looked at Jack, who shrugged his shoulders.

She handed the man her phone and stood next to Jack by the railing facing away from the sunset. She felt his hand rest on her waist, and her stomach fluttered for the hundredth time that day.

"Very nice," the man said as he snapped a couple of photos. "Now, make for her kiss."

Lana's stomach flipped, and any words caught in her throat. Jack must have felt her discomfort because he said, "No, thank you. We're in public."

"No, no, no, it okay. Yalla, yalla, go make for her kiss."

This time Lana jumped in. "Oh, thanks, we're good." She started walking toward the man to grab her phone back, but he just held it in his hand, unfaltering.

"No, no, I okay. I not mind. Yalla, make kiss for camera," he said with his full smile still on display and obviously not getting the social cues from them.

Lana looked at Jack, who just shrugged again. She reasoned that she didn't want anyone to spit on her food, so okay, she'd give Jack a quick kiss on the cheek for the camera.

As soon as she gave him a little peck on the cheek, the man shook his head in disapproval. "No, not, not like this. Make it nice."

Before Lana could respond, Jack turned to her, and his lips crashed into hers. She stood there frozen for a beat, and then eased into it, kissing him back. The butterflies in her stomach were on high alert as he placed his hand on her cheek. His minty breath washed over her, and his musky cologne filled her nostrils. There was a hunger and urgency in his kiss, and she relished the softness of his lips on hers.

The kiss grew more intimate as she placed one of her hands on his cheek. For a moment she thought Jack was going to deepen it further, yet he abruptly broke away as soon as the man spoke again. "Yes. This very good. I bring you nice picture. Okay, yalla, come sit. Look at menu, and I back soon."

The man pulled out seats for Jack and Lana, who were both out of breath, standing there, still staring at each other.

When the man left, Jack cleared his throat and went first to sit down at the table. He pulled up the menu, covering his face slightly. "Sorry, I just didn't want to be there all night. Figured to just get it over with."

Lana tried to slow her breathing down. A part of her felt so connected to Jack, but she reminded herself that he might not like her like that anymore. It was just a fake kiss. "No, good thinking, thanks," she managed to say through breaths.

They both stayed silent, and Lana touched her lips, remembering what was once there. The man came back and took their orders, and Jack was still silent, looking out at the city.

After they ordered, Lana broke the tension with a question she had been thinking about all day. "Jack, do you think they really will sell it to us? The box? At the museum?"

Jack gave Lana a grave look. "I sure hope so. I think I can make a compelling offer, though, so I think it's likely."

"What if they don't, though? What if it's gone when we're there? What if something happened to it?"

"Well, we'll find out tomorrow, I guess, and go from there."

"Yeah, I guess so."

The rest of the dinner was spent talking about their families, Chloe and Jeremy and how they were totally going to get together, and dreams for the future. Lana shared with Jack that she was thinking about enrolling in culinary school when they got back. He seemed very enthusiastic about the idea, and it made Lana even more excited about it.

They walked back to the riad the same way they'd left, hands intertwined.

The tension that had risen that evening lingered. She ached and longed to kiss Jack again. As soon as they got in the room, both were very quiet.

Lana couldn't take it anymore. "Jack?"

"Yeah?" Jack responded as he started taking his shoes off.

She stopped herself, shifting her feet. "Never mind." She fidgeted with her bracelets before taking them off.

Jack didn't press and went straight into the bathroom.

Ugh, I think I might be sick. This is so hard. Why hasn't he made an actual move on me yet? Is he dating someone else?

She quickly changed into her oversized t-shirt and shorts, and Jack came out of the bathroom with his toiletry bag in hand. She went in and began brushing her teeth. They were unusually quiet tonight. She couldn't shake the churning in the pit of her stomach.

I must be nervous about the museum tomorrow.

When she emerged from the bathroom, Jack was already in bed with the lights turned out. She tiptoed to her bed and could hear him turning. As she got into the covers, she wanted, no needed, to break the deafening silence.

"Jack?"

"Yeah, Lana?"

"Can we still play Twenty Questions?"

"Sure."

"What did you tell Tammy back in LA that made her so upset? Just curious."

"She leads the fantasy football group, and I needed to tell her in person why I was leaving. She's a bit obsessive, and I knew she wouldn't let me off so easily."

"So did you end up officially leaving the group?"

"Yeah, I did."

Lana smiled. She turned away from Jack and tried to force herself to sleep.

"Lana?"

"Mmm?"

"I... goodnight."

Lana wanted to press, she wasn't so sure she was ready for whatever Jack was going to say. "Goodnight, Jack."

Lana tossed and turned thinking about their kiss earlier in the evening. She heard Jack's heavy breathing and assumed that he was already asleep. She desperately wanted Jack to be next to her. To feel his warm touch, to kiss him again but in a real, intentional way. She forced the thoughts out of her mind and drifted off into sleep.

***

What did we think about the first kiss? Did we expect it to go this way? Please leave any comments and hit the vote button if you think Jack and Lana should do more kissing in the future. ☺️♥️