Free Miles From Kara by Melissa West Page B

legs back out in front of me and crossed them at the ankles so I could be sure they wouldn’t tremble.
    â€œRight, around the corner. You can’t miss it.”
    â€œKara.”
    â€œHmm?”
    â€œKara, look at me,” he said, his voice low and rough and so, so sexy.
    I tilted my head slightly toward him and peered up without saying a word. I tried to relax my breathing, my heart, but as my eyes locked on his, I found it impossible to do anything but stare.
    He smiled and leaned in closer, his voice dropping so only I could hear him. “I like the way you look at me.”
    â€œHow do I look at you?”
    His eyes met mine. “Like it’s a struggle to remain still.”
    Warmth pooled in my belly, settling below. I opened my mouth, thinking I could be brave enough to ask if he had the same struggle, when Sarah and Alyssa rushed toward us, their arms full of more snacks and popcorn.
    I released a breath, both relieved and frustrated that they’d interrupted us.
    â€œOh, good! It’s just about to start,” Sarah said, plopping down beside Taylor.
    Olivia turned to grin at me, but then her gaze shifted to Colt before returning to me, her eyebrows lifting in question. Then the movie began and I stared forward, saved from explaining why my barely ex-boyfriend’s roommate was here in Charleston, sitting inches from me.
    I adjusted the way I was sitting, pulling my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms tightly around them to give me something to hold on to. I felt too wound up, my body pushing me to throw caution to the wind, to jump in headfirst, eyes closed, without thought or sense or reason. I couldn’t trust myself to sit beside him so closely in the dark. My hands were already twitching to reach out and touch him. Without something to force them to be good, I couldn’t be sure where they might land.
    I tapped my fingers against my legs and my toes against the blanket to a beat far in the distance, my body’s way of telling me it wanted to be there instead of here.
    â€œAre you bored?” Colt whispered from beside me.
    â€œMe? No. Why?”
    He motioned to my feet, which were still bouncing to the music.
    â€œOh, that’s just me,” I said, instantly stopping. “My body refuses to remain still when music is playing. It’s ridiculous. I’m taking medication.”
    He grinned, then peered around in the direction of the music. “Let’s go.”
    â€œWhat? No. The movie’s fine. I said I’d watch it with my friends.”
    â€œAnd I’m betting you’ve seen it a thousand times, right? Let’s go.” He stood up and reached out for me to take his hand, the sexiest smile I’d ever seen in my life on his face. “Walk with me.”
    I peeked around to find everyone in our group watching us, and my cheeks burned with worry over what they might be thinking. But still, as my gaze lifted back to his, I knew this was the turning point. Take his hand and go aimlessly into whatever this was, whatever we were, or shake my head and tuck away my feelings, ignoring the spark between us.
    Colt tilted his head, as though he knew just what I was thinking, and then before I could make the decision, he said, “It’s just a walk.” The words were simple enough, but I heard the change in his voice. He was asking me to take a chance, something I hadn’t done in so long that I wondered if I even knew how. Then I felt a nudge against my back and looked over my shoulder to find Olivia nodding for me to go.
    I peered back up at Colt just as the music in the distance switched to something slower, more intimate, the sort of song that played in the movies just before the couple kissed. I wondered if some cosmic cupid was out there, watching this moment, deciding for me that I needed to close the distance between our hands.
    Colt licked his lips and grinned, and the simple change on his face was like watching the