I still didn’t move.
My heart was pounding in my chest, harder than it had been when I was trying to ask her out. My hands clenched a little against my legs as Mayra’s hand pushed against the side of my face. Her touch was soft, and where I would have normally leaned against her palm, I still did not move at all.
The cool air around us brushed over my mouth as Mayra moved away and sat back on her heels. Parting my eyelids, I focused on her knees beside me, my body still turned away from hers. With my gaze locked on her knees, I ran my tongue over my lips. They tasted different than I was used to, but it was okay. It was better than okay.
It was good.
Really good.
Mayra’s lips moved then.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
“What?” I muttered as I tried to wrap my head around what she was saying.
> “I shouldn’t have pushed you, Matthew—I’m so sorry!”
I blinked a few times and looked up at her eyes, which were tight and full of concern. Looking back to her lips, I wondered what I had done wrong to make her think she needed to apologize for anything, but I couldn’t find any words. I licked my lips again as I remembered the pressure against my mouth.
I hadn’t kissed her back.
Shit, shit, shit.
She must believe I didn’t want her to or that I didn’t like it because I hadn’t kissed her back. I was completely and totally inexperienced, but I’d certainly seen enough television to know you are supposed to kiss back.
“Again?” I asked quietly as I turned my eyes up to meet hers.
Mayra paused and looked at me as I tried to hold her gaze. I didn’t last long—I had to look away after only a few seconds—but I kept glancing back to her eyes.
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“Yes,” I replied with a nod.
Her whole body seemed to relax a little as she shifted in the seat and brought her hand back up to my face. Her fingers trailed over my jaw and into the hair at the back of my neck as she leaned in again. I closed my eyes until I felt the touch of her lips on mine.
I pressed back.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Testing it all out.
For a fleeting moment, I was taken back to the first time my dad took me to the gym. There was a trainer there who led me to the back and showed me how to put on the boxing gloves and then how to hit the heavy bag. The first couple of times I hit it, it felt both strange and good all at once. Then once I got the rhythm, my trainer had to practically pull me away from it to get me to stop.
I pressed again, feeling her lips move with mine as I increased the force. Her fingers curled around my neck, encouraging me to move more, so I did. My head tilted to the side as I kissed her again, harder this time. I reached out and touched her leg, then ran up the outside of her thigh to her hip, where my fingers gripped her right at the edge of her jeans.
Mayra gasped a little as I pulled her closer to me, wrapping my other arm around her shoulders and turning my head the opposite direction at the same time. Her tongue touched my lips, and I didn’t hesitate at all to meet it with my own.
Better than chocolate cake.
Her tongue felt smooth against mine, and I found myself rising up to my knees like she was—turning sideways in the car and finding myself somewhat above her to avoid the emergency brake between us. It gave me a better angle, and I used it. I kissed her again, my tongue in her mouth and my hands twisting her back down against the seat. Her legs unfolded from below her, and a moment later, I was on top of her in the driver’s seat, still not removing my mouth from hers.
We just kept kissing and kissing and kissing.
My lower leg was really uncomfortable, and one of my arms was kind of trapped underneath her body so I couldn’t move it, but my other hand was free. I ran it up and down her side as our mouths moved together. Mayra’s fingers dug into my hair with a sensation that was definitely different from when we sat and watched television but still felt really good. She used her other hand to grip my back, which sent small shivers all over my skin.
Every once in a while, we would pause to take a breath, but that was about it. Other than that, we remained the same—mouths locked, hearts pounding, and Mayra’s body pinned beneath mine in her car. I never wanted it to stop, and if left to my own devices, I might very well have just starved to death rather than move away.