apter 47
Only the whisper of wind and Zachary’s heavy breathing drifted by Jessica’s ears.
She pushed him, afraid the passersby would see them. It would be embarrassing to be caught in broad daylight at a place like this.
However, the more she pushed, the tighter he held her.
Her slim waist pressed against his abdomen, her feet just slightly lifted off the ground, with only the tips touching. She clutched his sweater, her eyes shut–too shy to look around, too vulnerable to look at him.
All she could do was fist his coat lightly, but his kiss proceeded to deepen with eagerness.
His one hand slid under her hair, cupping the back of her head and pulling her closer. His scent, a mixture of sweetness and woodiness, engulfed her whole.
“That’s just a couple making out! Why would Mr. Jones be doing something like that in public? It’s not like he’s a freak!”
Joshua quickly diverted Eric’s attention, dragging him to the other side while not forgetting to glance at the mountain panel.
He froze, deliberating for a long moment. “Shit. If Mr. Jones heard me, I’m so going to get fired.”
He had just called his boss a freak.
“No, it really looks like him! Guys, look-” Eric chirped incessantly.
Joshua continued dragging him away, while Susan teased, “You really should find yourself a girlfriend, Mr. Jakerman.”
Their voices faded as the group walked down the path. At last, Zachary reluctantly pulled back from Jessica’s lips.
By then, her cheeks were flushed, her breath labored, and her eyes shimmered with a glassy heat. Like a weighted blanket, her body slumped against his chest, her legs barely strong enough to hold her up.
His kiss had a way of unraveling her. Regardless of the field, it appeared he mastered everything with unnerving precision.
“Barbaric…” Jessica chastised softly.
Zachary playfully pinched her cheek. “You’re right.”
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His voice came out low and hoarse as the heat of his fingertips brushed against her cheek. She instinctively gripped the front of his sweater, trying to steady herself.
Truthfully, she liked it more than she cared to admit. Her mind protested, but her body had a will of its own. Somewhere in the middle of the kiss, she had kissed him back.
She couldn’t even remember when she started. The divide between conscious thought and physical desire blurred until there was no telling them apart.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped back and pulled herself out of his arms.
A smirk crept onto his lips as he noticed her smudged lipstick. He lifted a thumb and traced the corner of her lips. “It’s smudged.”
“I’ll clean it up,” she said quickly, turning away before he could do more.
In the meantime, Zachary went to take a call. “Hey, Hazel… Yeah… Okay, sure.”
As they departed from the chapel, he informed Jessica with a suppressed smile, we’ll eat out tonight.”
“Hazel said
“Oh, okay.”
Jessica lamented to herself. Hazel had actually skipped calling her own daughter and gone straight to Zachary instead. How wonderful of her!
“I heard that your girlfriends are coming as well,” he added.
“What?”
Jessica was taken by surprise. Her girlfriends?
“Elsie will be joining us.”
Behind his glasses, his sharp eyes held her in place, betraying no emotion.
Zachary called Elsa “Elsie“, which meant he had overheard everything on the balcony the other day!
“Great…”
Her face was so flushed by then that she could only follow behind him, doing everything she could to keep him from seeing the embarrassment on her face.
He tucked his hands into his pocket, an amused expression resting on his own face.
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