Talking with Jesse was equally as nerve-rattling as walking a tightrope and as easy as reading my favorite book. He was that rare, special type of human who made you feel like you'd known him forever. He was easy to chat with and he smiled a lot, which I found to be rather magical, and by the time the pilot notified us that it was five minutes until midnight, I was kicking myself for not happening to have a ticket to New York City, too.

I knew our fun would be coming to a close soon. It wouldn't be much longer until we'd be speeding to a halt on the O'Hare runway, and I was praying like hell that something would delay our descent just so I could see Jesse smile a few more times.

"What about you? Do you have a whirlwind romance back home?" I finally blurted out the

nagging question on my mind and then immediately wished I could put the words back in my mouth.

I was still pretty positive that he had an equally drop dead gorgeous girlfriend, but I couldn't resist prying to find out for sure. Secretly, I hoped he didn't, even though I was standing firm on my position of not giving another man a chance until I figured my life out.

Jesse chuckled a wonderful, deep, soothing sound, and flashed me that perfectly white smile again. "No, I don't, actually."

Say whaaaaat?!

"That's surprising." I said the first thing that popped in my head and cringed at my lack of a filter.

The last thing I needed to be doing was giving him the impression that I thought women should be lining up, drooling over him. Although, I was sure by now that he could practically read my mind.

Jesse cocked a curious brow, but didn't comment on my response. Instead, he told me that he'd been through a similar situation to mine. The difference was that his girlfriend, Maria, had been cheating on him for nine months with his so-called best friend. He'd caught them in the act on the very night he'd intended to propose.

"That's horrible!" I gasped.

I wondered how in the hell Maria could've ever thought for even a second that cheating on a man as too-die-for as Jesse was a good idea. He was, without a doubt, the most attractive man I'd ever laid eyes on, and contrary to my opinion of well-to-do men, he seemed to have a genuinely great personality. I couldn't imagine she'd find a hotter man to quell her desires. Jesse appeared to be a true sweetheart. Why would anyone want to give up a man like him?

He glanced out the window at the farmland we were flying over. Dozens of wind turbines lit up the night sky with their blinking red lights. If you didn't know what they were, you might think aliens were landing. It was an eerie sight.

"Like you said..." Jesse turned back to face me again, his expression more somber now. "Good thing I found out at that point, rather than after the proposal or marriage."

"That doesn't make it any less shitty or painful, though," I said, talking more about my own experience than his.

He did that one-shouldered shrug again and reached for my hand. I'd been leaning against the arm of the chair with my hand hanging off the end. When he tenderly took ahold of my hand and slipped his fingers in between mine, I nearly choked on air.

"You're right," Jesse said in almost a whisper, his deep ocean eyes staring into my soul again. "But it does, however, make you stronger and wiser. I tend to think there's a reason for a relationship not working out – like fate has something to do with it. I know that sounds cheesy, but bear with me. If our exes hadn't cheated on us, we probably would've gone through with marrying them, and we probably would've ended up miserable later on. Maybe I'm wrong, but maybe "fate" – whatever fate is – wants us to be happy. Does that even begin to make sense?"

Jesse chuckled awkwardly like he felt lame for his explanation of fate. His cheeks reddened just enough to tell me he'd embarrassed himself, but I found it to be extremely adorable.

Although his statement was, in fact, pretty cheesy, it did make a lot of sense to me. I wasn't sure if I believed in "fate," per say, but I definitely believed that everything happened for a reason, and I wanted to believe that those reasons usually had to do with steering a wayward soul in a better direction.

"Actually, I agree with you," I told him as a little zap tickled my nerves where the pad of his finger rubbed back and forth against my palm. "I never would've known Brad was cheating on me if I hadn't gone home early. I know he was planning to propose during the party tonight, and I was planning on saying yes. Honestly, it scares me shitless to think of how unhappy I would probably be in a few years, had I not found out and had I accepted his proposal."

"Besides that, if you hadn't caught him cheating, you never would've booked this flight," Jesse said in an almost teasing voice, a lazy smirk making its way across his tempting mouth, and I knew he was roundabout telling me that he was glad I'd ended up there with him.

"Yeah," I said a little quieter and leaned in just an inch or two closer. "If I'd never booked this flight, I never would've met you."

My voice was sultry and my words were brazen, but I didn't care. If I was on the rebound, I sure didn't realize it. There was something drawing me to Jesse in a way that I'd never felt a pull toward another man before, and I couldn't bring myself to look away from his stunning blue eyes. Jesse was like a giant magnet pulling me in with such force that resistance would be futile. The temptation pumping through my veins was screaming in my ears to not even think about resisting.

"I'm glad you did," Jesse said with a voice of satin, his eyes seeming to darken with desire.

I could practically hear Haley's voice in my head telling me I may as well join the Mile-High Club. For this guy, I might...

Jesse glanced at his watch to see that it was 11:58PM. Two more minutes until I could delve into that cliché "New Year, New Me" trend that everyone always attempted, but never stuck to. I tried to tell myself that maybe it could work for me, though. It was about to be a new year and I was about to start over in a new city, find a new job, and explore who knew how many new things. Maybe "New Year, New Me" was more reasonable than I thought.

"It's a shame neither of us are getting the coveted New Year's Kiss," Jesse said with a laugh, and I knew he was making a joke, but my mind instantly ran full speed in the direction of wondering what it would feel like to kiss him.

I wasn't sure how to respond, so I managed a girly laugh and then wondered how dumb I probably sounded to him. I didn't want to come across as the giggling Barbie type. Then again, I thought to myself, why did I care how I presented myself to this man? I'd been dead set on not trying to rebound or engage in any sort of activity with a new man. I needed to focus on what was important, and what was important had nothing to do with locking lips with Sexy Stranger. Besides, after this flight, I would never see him again. There was no point in flirting with him. It would be over before it could have a chance to start.

"Yeah, it is," I finally agreed and tried to divert my attention away from his eyes that seemed to keep pulling me in. "Any big plans for the new year?"

I was eyeing the flight attendants talking up at the front of the plane. One of them kept twirling her curly hair around her finger and giggling to the other. I guessed they were probably gossiping about the attractive copilot they'd been fawning over before we'd left Dallas. Speaking of the giggling Barbie type...

"Honestly, I'm not really thinking about that right now, Vanessa," Jesse's smooth voice teased at my senses, and I thought for a second that I could almost feel his breath on my neck, even though he was a good foot and a half away.

I turned my attention back to him and it occurred to me that his fingers were still laced with mine. I looked down at our intertwined hands and a scalding blush rose to my cheeks once more. I knew he could tell I was a little flustered when he started rubbing the pad of his finger against my palm again. It was such a simple little motion, but it had my heartrate kicking up to full throttle.

"What are you thinking about then?" I boldly asked, my voice laced with suggestion that matched the heat in his gaze.

The corners of Jesse's mouth curved upward in the sexiest way and he leaned a little closer, his minty breath seducing me more.

"I have an idea," he said, his focus dancing back and forth from my eyes to my mouth.

My heart was thundering in my chest now. "Oh?"

He flashed that knee-weakening smile and I was just about done for. "This might sound crazy, but what if we were each other's New Year's Kiss?"

The sound of tires screeching to a stop came to mind. My jaw dropped for a good five seconds while I tried to figure out how the fuck to respond to such a salacious suggestion.

"I beg your pardon?" I asked, wide-eyed and almost stuttering.

Jesse breathed a laugh and ran his free hand through his hair again. "Well, think of it this way: We're both single. We're both going different places and have different plans. We're not looking for something serious this soon. And let's be honest – it'd be really nice to end the year on a high note. What harm could it do to share a midnight kiss with a stranger whom you'll never have to see again?"

It sounded like a one-night stand, but for kissing. A one-kiss stand? Was that a thing? Like dine and dash or ding dong ditch – kiss and run?

His suggestion gave a whole new meaning to "no strings attached." I'd heard of things like that happening in books and movies, but never in real life. It was a wild proposition to make to someone you didn't know, and I was almost too shocked to even consider it. Then again, I'd never taken any crazy chances in my life, having been too caught up in work, school, and Brad, and taking crazy chances was exactly the lifestyle change I was looking for. Maybe kissing a stranger on an airplane wasn't such a ridiculous idea after all...

"Just under fifteen more seconds!" The pilot's voice boomed through the tiny cabin speakers. "Let's count 'em down together, folks! Ten... nine... eight..."

The attendants and most of the passengers chimed in, counting down each second to the new year with our pilot, but Jesse and I weren't uttering a word, too busy getting lost in each other's gaze. In that moment, it occurred to me that Brad had never given me goosebumps and made me blush and muttered pretty things that sent shivers up my spine before a kiss. Brad had never held my hand and gently massaged it in a way that elicited a tingle in every nerve ending below my elbow. And Brad had definitely never eyed me with such a smoldering stare like Jesse's that could probably turn a lifelong lesbian straight.

"Seven... six... five..."

Maybe he was right. What harm could it do? Kissing this handsome stranger would give me the perfect jumpstart to my new year. It would be the perfect ending to this year. Hell, kissing Jesse would probably come with the rush and excitement of a one-night stand, but without any of the consequences. It sounded like a win-win situation. No regrets possible. Right?

"Four... three... two..."

Without saying a word, I grabbed ahold of Jesse's shirt collar and pulled him in, crashing my lips against his. He didn't miss a beat, his hands cupping either side of my face and his fingers venturing into my hair as he deepened our kiss.

All around us, other passengers were sharing a sweet kiss here and there and cheering for the new year, but Jesse and I hadn't stopped kissing. I'd never engaged in such a wild display in public, but caring what the other people on the plane thought about our P.D.A. was the furthest thing from my mind. All I could focus on was the drop dead sexy man beside me and how fucking incredible his mouth and tongue and hands felt on my body. We couldn't kiss each other enough. We couldn't touch or taste each other enough. Our breaths were ragged and our faces were flushed, but we were both completely lost in bliss, lost in each other, and not a single second of it didn't feel perfectly meant to be. It was rough. It was urgent. It was the hottest fucking thing I'd ever experienced.

And then it was over.