In Love With Him

Chapter 6

Kennedy’s POV

After Finn and Marty finally left — in true chaotic best friend fashion, promising a beach day soon and a hundred texts by sundown — I took a deep breath and shut the door behind them.

I was exhausted and hot. And not just from the Florida sun.

Being around them always lit a fire in my brain, but today that fire had another source entirely.

Dominic.

His name had no right living in my head the way it did. I’d tried to play it cool, tried to act like nothing was wrong… but every time I closed my eyes, I saw him.

Not the arrogant smirking version.

But this morning’s version.

Boxers. Muscles. Tattoos. Wet toothbrush. Jesus Christ.

I shook the thoughts off and turned toward the stairs. I needed to change. Cool off. Maybe ice myself down and delete half my brain.

I jogged up the first flight of stairs, then the second. I wasn’t expecting to run into anyone, especially him.

But the second I hit the landing at the top of the third floor—

I collided straight into him.

“Ah—!” I gasped, my body stumbling slightly as I smacked into something solid.

No — not something. Someone.

Dominic.

My bare stomach pressed into his T-shirt. My legs tangled for half a second. And then I leaned back instinctively—

Only to realize my heel was right at the edge of the stairs.

Panic gripped my chest. I started to tip.

Then I felt them — his hands.

Two strong, steady hands gripped my waist, firm but careful, pulling me forward before I could fall. The feel of his fingers against my bare skin made my entire body stiffen, my breath catching in my throat.

I let out a soft, involuntary gasp — not of fear, but something… else.

Heat surged through me like electricity.

His hands were so warm. His touch wasn’t harsh — it was grounding, like I was suddenly aware of every inch of my body and the space between us.

I looked up.

And he was already staring down at me.

His blue eyes weren’t cocky. Not right now. They looked surprised — confused, even. Like he hadn’t expected this moment any more than I had.

We stood there, frozen.

I could feel the way his fingers flexed slightly on my waist, the way his chest rose and fell just a little faster than before. My pulse throbbed in my ears, and my brain — that little annoying logical voice — whispered don’t you dare kiss him.

But God help me, I wanted to.

I wanted to know what it would feel like to lean in. Just a little. To press my mouth to his and see if he tasted like danger and peppermint, the way he looked.

But I didn’t.

Because that’s not who I am.

Dominic blinked, then pulled his hands back, shifting me gently away from the stairs like I was fragile glass.

“You okay?” he asked, his voice a little lower than usual. Rougher.

My mouth opened, but my brain had abandoned ship.

Say something, i***t.

“Y-yeah. I’m—I’m fine.”

Brilliant. Just brilliant.

We stood there awkwardly for a beat too long. I could feel my cheeks flushing, my skin still buzzing from where he touched me.

“I was just… going to change,” I blurted, gesturing vaguely toward my room like I didn’t know where it was.

Dominic’s lips curled into that infuriating smirk. “Yeah. You do that, princess.”

And just like that, he stepped away from me and disappeared into his room, leaving a trail of chaos behind him.

I stumbled into my own room, shut the door, leaned back against it…

And slammed my palm into my forehead.

“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid!” I whispered through gritted teeth.

What was that?!

What just happened?!

Why did my body feel like it had short-circuited?

I paced my room in circles, hands on my hips, biting my lip until I thought I’d break the skin.

He was just helping me. That’s all.

That’s all it was.

But the way he looked at me…

The way he touched me…

No. No, I was reading too much into it.

This was exactly why I didn’t date. Why I didn’t let myself get pulled into drama or emotional tornadoes. Because my brain made things messy.

I changed quickly — throwing on a loose T-shirt and shorts — then flopped down on my bed face-first and screamed into my pillow again.

Same pillow.

Same Kennedy.

New problem.

This was going to get a lot harder before it got easier.

And I had no idea how to stop it.

---

Dominic’s POV

I wasn’t expecting her.

One second I was heading down the hallway to get a drink from down stairs…

And the next thing I knew, bam — Kennedy was in my arms.

Literally.

She came around that corner so fast, she ran right into me. Her body collided with mine, all soft skin and tight curves, and before I could process anything, she stumbled backward—

And I saw it.

The edge of the stairs right behind her heel.

No hesitation.

I grabbed her waist, and pulled her forward. My hands landed on bare skin — right where her bikini bottoms just barely touched her hips. Her stomach was smooth, warm, and I swear to God, I felt her shiver beneath my fingers.

Then she gasped.

That kind of gasp.

Not scared.

Turned on.

For a second, we just stared at each other.

I was still holding her waist, fingers curled around her like I was afraid to let go. She looked up at me with wide, stormy gray-blue eyes that sparkled under the hallway light. Her lips were slightly parted, chest rising and falling fast. Her body practically humming against mine.

And I...

I didn’t move.

Because something about that moment… stopped me.

Kennedy had never looked at me like that before.

Not annoyed. Not sarcastic. Not guarded.

Just—raw. Open. Real.

And damn it if it didn’t flip a switch I’d been trying like hell to keep off.

I shifted her away from the stairs, fingers lingering a second longer than necessary before I forced myself to let go. Cleared my throat, straightened up.

“You okay?” I asked, voice low.

She nodded, “Y-yeah. I’m—I’m fine.”

God, the way she was looking at me… it almost made me step forward again. Almost made me close the distance.

But she blinked and looked away, breaking the spell. “I was just… going to change.”

That voice — soft, awkward. The stammering. The heat in her cheeks.

It made me want to kiss her senseless.

Instead, I smirked. Muscle memory.

“Yeah. You do that, princess.”

And I walked away like my pulse wasn’t slamming through my veins.

I shut the door to my room and leaned against it, staring at the floor.

What the hell just happened?

Why did that feel like… more?

I looked down at my hands, still tingling from touching her. My body still remembered how her skin felt — soft, tight, impossibly smooth. I could still see the curve of her waist, the flicker in her eyes, the slight tremble of her breath.

And f**k, the way her body molded into mine for that half second—

Like it fit.

I ran a hand through my hair and paced.

This was bad. Really bad.

Because now that I’d touched her, now that I’d heard that little gasp and seen her lips part like that… it was going to be damn near impossible not to imagine it again.

Not to think about what she’d sound like gasping my name.

Not to wonder what those lips would feel like on mine.

I squeezed my eyes shut and let out a long breath.

No.

I couldn’t do this. She was off-limits.

Technically, not by blood — sure. But that didn’t matter.

This situation was already a powder keg.

I needed a distraction. A reset. A way to not think about Kennedy Smith standing inches from me in barely anything, smelling like coconut and sin, and looking like she was two seconds from leaning in.

My phone buzzed — the beach bunny from earlier.

“U up?”

Jesus. It was barely eight.

I stared at the screen for a second before putting the phone down.

Even she didn’t seem like a good enough distraction right now.

And that was the real problem.

Because for the first time in a long damn time…

No one else was good enough.