The Redemption of Callie & Kayden

when he nips at my lip, dragging his teeth along the inside of it.
    “Kayden,” I moan and fasten my arms around his neck. I pull him against me and he crushes us against the side of the building. His hands start to stray down my body and my hips curve into him. Smothering heat sizzles off our bodies as our tongues melt and twine together. A shot of ecstasy shoots up between my legs as I feel his hardness pressed against me and the sensation amplifies when his hand cups my breast. I forget where we are and how hard it is to exist sometimes. I just want him. So badly. I want him to hold me forever.
    But then his lips are leaving me and he sets me back down just as quickly as he picked me up. We slam to a standstill again and I try not to fall apart. My lips feel swollen, my lungs are heaving ravenously, and everywhere his hands touched, brushed, and grazed tingles, and all I can think about is doing more with him.
    His emerald eyes are glossy and he pants erratically, looking away from me to the beach and out to the side of the building. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
    I shake my head and place a hand on his cheek. “Kayden, look at me.”
    He blinks his eyes against the sunlight and then forces his eyes to meet mine. “Callie, I can’t be doing this. We need to be… we need to be just friends.”
    “Just friends?” I frown because I don’t want to be friends. But at this moment it’s not about what I want. It’s what he needs. “That’s what you really need?”
    He nods his head, with his jaw clamped tightly. “For now…” He swallows hard as he stuffs his hands into his pockets, the muscles in his lean arms wound tight. “And this isn’t about you. I promise.” He’s not looking at me, but just over my shoulder. “It’s me.”
    I bite at my lip, considering my next words carefully. “Whatever you need, Kayden. I’m here. You can talk to me.”
    He conclusively meets my gaze and there’s a spark within his pupils that I haven’t seen since we reunited. “I know that.”
    A smile touches my lips, and daringly, I reach forward and lace my fingers through his. “Let’s go get something to eat, before Seth ends up throwing a tantrum. He’s been complaining the last hour about how hungry he is.”
    Kayden nods, his fingers twitching as I stroke my thumb across the palm of his hand for reasons that are unclear to me. “Okay.” He fakes a smile and I hate that he’s faking it in front of me. It means he’s closed off, and I don’t want that. I want him to trust me like I trust him. I owe him that much.
    I owe him a lot more.
    I owe him everything.
    * * *
    An hour later we’re seated out on the deck of a restaurant that’s right by the ocean. The air smells like salt and there’s a light breeze that kisses my cheeks and blows strands of my hair into my eyes. The sun is lowering and the heat is a little bit more bearable. There are a few people sitting at the round wooden tables scattered around the deck, but for the most part it’s quiet.
    The four of us are sitting silently as we read our menus. Kayden’s seated next to me and he has his knee resting against mine. I’m not sure if he notices or not, but I don’t dare move, afraid that he’ll move it—pull away again.
    “So how about some sushi?” Seth jokes, shattering the silence. “Or some crab.”
    Luke rolls his brown eyes as he pops his knuckles. “I think I’m going to go with a burger.”
    Kayden is biting his lip and I watch him as he reads over his menu, fantasizing about his mouth back on mine. He has his hand tucked under the table and he keeps flicking the rubber bands on his wrists over and over. By the sound of the snap, it has to hurt, but I don’t dare try to stop him. If that’s what he needs, then it’s what he needs.
    “I think I’m going to have the same.” Kayden closes his menu and places it into the middle of the table beside the ketchup and mustard rack.
    It goes silent again and Seth starts texting on his phone while Luke stares out at the beach to the side of us. The waiter finally comes and takes our orders and brings us our drinks. We sip on our straws quietly, with the rush of the waves filling up the empty miles of space between our thoughts.
    “That’s it,” Seth abruptly says and pounds his hand down onto the table. All three of us jump, startled, and Kayden almost knocks his drink to the ground.
    Luke’s head whips in his direction and he shoots Seth a death glare. “Next time