Joey dropped his hand to take mine in his. His gaze dropped to our connected hands.

“Tell me what you’re thinking Tessa.”

I swallowed. I couldn’t think straight.

His eyes lifted to mine. “I need you to tell me what you want.”

The images of me kissing him and then him kissing me back flashed in my mine. I knew what I wanted but I wasn’t brave enough to tell him.

His thumb brushed against my skin, sending shivers through me.

“Tessa.” The sound of my name on his lips swept through me, making me very aware of how close we were.

His gaze dropped to my lips before lifting back up to meet mine.

“I need to know how you feel.”

I wanted to tell him but fear kept me silent.

“You know how I feel about you.”

Butterflies erupted in my stomach simultaneously.

“How-w you feel about me?” I echoed. My mind was slow to catch up.

He nodded and smiled.

My heart stuttered and sputtered in my chest. I took a breath and held it.

“When I’m not with you, you’re all I can think about,” he admitted, softly.

Wow. My mind went blank.

“One thing I learnt from Parker’s death was that life is too short to mess around or to play games. I don’t want to waste a second.”

He declaration winded me. Parker.

The name echoed me. I remembered Parker was his best friend. He had also been mine. But there was a niggling feeling that I was forgetting something. It was the same unsettled feeling that had plagued me from the moment I had woken up.

“Parker,” I said the name out loud trying to jolt something that I couldn’t seem to remember but there was nothing. It was frustrating.

Joey nodded. “One moment he was there and the next he wasn’t. We have no idea how much time we have. I don’t want to waste a moment of it.”

I nodded absentmindedly trying to figure out why I couldn’t seem to remember something that felt important while I listened to Joey.

“That’s why I need to know how you feel Tessa.”

My attention was pulled back to the present where Joey was waiting for to say something.

“How I feel?” I said, trying to remember what he had been saying.

“Yes,” he replied, expectantly. “How do you feel about me Tessa?”

I swallowed nervously. I had never done this before so I had no idea what to do. All I knew was that I liked him, I wanted him. It was that simple.

“I like you.” Three words declared, how I felt about him.

His mouth widened into a smile and I felt the butterflies renewed flight in my mid drift.

“So where do we go from here?” he asked softly, as if he needed me to steer where this thing between us went.

Joey was experienced with girls, unlike me. I had no experience with boys and dating. I had never been kissed. My fingers touch my lips like I was trying to remember something.

I knew had never been kissed, my mouth tingled with anticipation.

“I don’t know. I’ve never done this before,” I finally admitted how innocent I was when it came to dating and the opposite sex.

“You’ve never had a boyfriend?” He seemed surprise.

It made me feel like such a loser.

I shook my head. “No. I’ve never had a boyfriend.”

“How is that possible?” His eyes wide with shock.

I shrugged. “I was always busy with something else.” The something else for the life of me I couldn’t remember. It was the most annoying feeling, being unable to recall things that I know I should have been able to.

“Boys and dating were never a priority.”

He frowned. “Have you been kissed?”

I shook my head slowly.

His hand tightened around mine and I found myself staring at his mouth. I wanted to kiss him but I didn’t know how to take what I wanted. I felt like such an idiot.

“Tell me what you want?” he asked in a whisper, moving closer.

I swallowed, unable to look away from his mouth. “I want…”

I was trying to find the courage to take what I wanted. What was wrong with me? I had a guy who I knew liked me asking me what I wanted. Why was it so hard to articulate it?

“Tell me Tessa.” He moved closer, our mouths just a breath apart.

“Kiss me.” There I had done it.

His eyes lowered before his mouth touched mine softly and I sighed. My hands went to his shoulders, for fear he would stop or move away. I wanted more.

He lifted his mouth from mine.

“More,” I managed to breath, my hands still holding his shoulders. I wanted him to sweep me in a world where the only thing mattered was what he was doing to me.

“Are you sure?”

I nodded. “Yes. I want more.” That much I knew without a doubt.

He held my face and kissed me again. This time the pressure of his mouth on mine made me gasp and I opened my mouth against his. His tongue darted against mine. My hold on his shoulders tightened.

I had no idea what to do so I mimicked his movements. Our tongues tangled, our breathing became heavier. My one hand moved to curl my fingers around his neck and then into his hair.

He angled his mouth over mine, thrusting his tongue against mine. I wanted more.

My other hand went to his chest, and I felt his muscles strain against the flattened palm of my hand.

Then the kiss ended and I protested. He leaned his forehead against mine, he was breathing like he had just run a mile flat out.

“Why?” I managed to ask. My hand curled into shirt, unable to let him go.

I didn’t want to break this moment for fear something would be lost that I could never get back.

“I meant what I said about not wasting time. But I don’t want to rush you into something you’re not ready for.”

I wanted to protest but he placed a finger against my lips.

“I want to take you out, get to know you.”

It seemed reasonable but I wanted the heat between us. The feeling like that I needed him to kiss me or I would simply combust.

“Will there be kissing?” I was direct. Like he said about Parker, when we didn’t know how time we had, we didn’t want to waste it.

He chuckled softly before he nodded. “There will be plenty of kissing.”

That made me smile.

“There will be hand holding.”

I liked that.

“And?” I asked.

“And?” He lifted an eyebrow at me.

“I don’t know how this usually works.” I felt vulnerable when it came to my lack of knowledge in the dating game. It was modern times where dating was a very different game.

He frowned. “How what works?”

“This.” I was fearful to label it. I wasn’t sure how he saw this going forward and I feared I would say something that would mess things up.

I didn’t know how serious he wanted this to be. For me this was serious, more serious than a date or two. Would it be the same for him? It was something I couldn’t ask for fear it would shatter the little confidence I had.

“You are something special Tessa.”

Something special. The phrase vibrated through me probing deeper. It was feeling of deja vue. Like I had heard that phrase before but it was not in any memory I possessed.

“I don’t want to rush things with you Tessa. This is too special to screw up.” He looked so vulnerable. I lifted my hand to rest against the side of his face.

“You won’t,” I assured him.

There was something between us and I wanted it as much as he did.

“I don’t know how to do this,” I admitted, feeling vulnerable. “I’ve never dated before.”

He smiled. “I can help you navigate this.”

“You can?” I asked, teasingly.

He nodded. “I take you out and we have a good time. And at the end I get to kiss you.”

“I like the sound of that.”

“So does that mean you’ll be my girlfriend?” he asked out of the blue.

I nodded. “Yes.”

“No one else, just us,” he assured me.

Yes, that’s exactly what I wanted.