Passion's Crossfire

Chapter 5

Mallory

Adam is looking deep into my eyes, listening intently to me. My words melt into an incoherent murmur when suddenly, he leans forward and captures my lips in a passionate kiss. It's demanding and intense, a beautiful chaos of desire and longing.

"Mallory!" I hear Kylie's voice but I ignore it. I straddle Adam, without breaking the kiss. I'm consumed by the burning need to explore every inch of his body, to feel the warmth of his skin against mine. With a hunger that matches his own, I start to remove his shirt, my fingers trembling with anticipation. I need to see his body, I want to touch it, lick it...

"Mallory, will you just wake up?" Kylie exasperates as I open my eyes. I blink as I look around me, I am at Kylie's room and she is looking at me impatiently, tapping her foot on the floor.

"You better have a story worth telling, you ended up missing most of my party" she says wiggling her eyebrows.

I rub my eyes as I sit up and I grab my phone. "Kylie! It's 7:00 am? What the fuck?" I exclaim.

"I barely got any sleep, honey, you owe me a good story" she says and I roll my eyes. "So? What happened with Dreamy McHottie?"

I chuckle as I watch her get comfortable next to me, looking at me like a small child ready for story time.

"Well," I begin, "Adam and I did share a pretty intense kiss." Kylie lets out an excited squeal, making me laugh. "But, that's it." I shrug.

"WHAT? Are you kidding me right now? Did you not see the way he was looking at you? Are you blind? Tell me that this is a joke please."

"Adam is great, Kylie. I want to get to know him first! Is that so bad?" I smile at the thought of his arms around me. "It felt right when he was holding me, like I was the only woman in the world for him. Maybe it can be something more than a one-night stand" I say shrugging.

Kylie rolls her eyes and slaps her forehead. "Always a hopeless romantic, Mal. He would be a great rebound, something to get Matt out of your system"

Matt is definitely out of my system. I can't say it out loud though, I barely admit to myself that since the moment I laid eyes on Adam, I forgot everything about Matt. I am not someone who just needs to be in a relationship. Isn't it too soon for me to be in one? It felt so right, though.

Adam and I talked for hours. I told him about my studies and how it's has always been my dream to become a doctor. Adam is getting his degree in chemical engineering and he has already a job offer by a big company that owns many refineries. It sounded so fascinating and I loved the way his face lit when he was talking about his passion for science and its applications.

It wasn't a surprise to find out that he loved working out, I could tell by his hard muscles that enclosed me so perfectly. He said that working out daily is a great outlet for him and I was amazed by the variety of activities he is into: kick-boxing, CrossFit, hiking, swimming etc. I felt like a real couch potato, apart from my dancing lessons, my hobbies are not that active, mostly watching movies, reading books and gardening.

We exchanged numbers and made plans to go for a hike next Sunday. It will be my first hike ever and I am so excited. Adam said he knows a great trail, with a great view on top.

Definitely not a rebound guy. Not a one-night stand. I want more and I could feel he did too.

"Will you two stop talking? Some of us are still sleeping"

We both giggle as we turn to look at Rachel sleeping on the floor and we quickly make our way out of the room. Rachel had a little too much to drink last night and we didn't let her take her car home. She must have a wicked hangover right now.

As we enter the kitchen, the inviting aroma of freshly brewed coffee enveloped me, awakening my senses with its rich, comforting scent. Kylie's older brother, Jonathan, was sitting at the kitchen island with a cup in his hands, scrolling through his phone. They look so much alike, with their brown curly hair and green eyes. The family resemblance is striking, and they share that same mischievous twinkle in their eyes.

"Jonathan, your coffee is the best coffee ever, you know that?" I say as I poured a cup for myself and sat next to him. "I thought you would be at the party yesterday."

"Yeah, I would really love to spend my Saturday night with a bunch of twenty-year-olds" he says scrunching his nose. "I had somewhere grown-up to be"

Jonathan is five years older than us, but he used to hang out with us a lot, until four years ago when suddenly he decided that we were too young to hang out with.

"Ha-ha" I say as I delivered a light punch on his arm. "It was your sister's birthday; you could have stayed a bit."

"You really should have, Matt showed up yesterday. I almost called you when I found him at the front yard, after I had kicked him out"

Jonathan's eyes darken and he turns to his sister. "Matt was here? And he wouldn't leave?" he says angrily.

"Don't worry, bro, eventually he left." Kylie shrugs.

Kylie fills us in everything that happened to the party last night, painting a vivid picture of the excitement and chaos I had missed. I feel a little guilty that I spent the whole party talking to Adam, I truly missed the entire party. Kylie doesn't seem to mind though; she seems genuinely happy that I had a good time.

Rachel woke up two hours later and she offered to drive me home. Kylie suggested that I stay for lunch with her parents, but I had promised my dad I would help him with the garden today. I hugged her goodbye and as Rachel started driving away, I decided to text Adam.

"Hey, Adam! How are you? I can't wait for our hike next week :)"