Page 12 of Hero

I don’t think it through, instead, I pull him down and rise on my toes to kiss his bearded cheek when in one fluid motion he surprises me, snagging my lips and claiming me with his mouth.

I stiffen in response but quickly relax into it and open up, urging him on with my own hungry tongue. And with every sensual caress, every slick stroke where the pad of his tongue swipes mine, a sea of pleasure sweeps me toward absolute bliss.

Silas is not my first kiss. I kissed guys before I met Harvey. Dates that went nowhere and kisses that lacked that special something. And even though Harvey was the first guy who wanted to date seriously, he always felt like another guy. There was never any passion.

Nothing, and I mean, nothing compares to Silas. His lips and tongue transcend anything I’ve ever experienced. It’s like he imprints himself on the very fabric of my being. A fleeting moment becomes a lifetime and the boundaries between us blur and I don’t know where I begin and he ends.

And for the second time today, my mind spins with questions.

How can a mouth make me feel so good? Alive? Wanted? Needed?

When we break apart, I’m briefly lost without the touch of his hungry mouth. But when I open my eyes he’s looking at me, staring into my soul.

His eyes speak to me, echoing what his mouth stated—you’re my woman.

“What are you doing?” I ask, surprised there’s still breath in my lungs.

“Giving them a show,” he says in a ravaged voice.

I peer around at the small audience and broaden my smile. I hook onto Silas's arm and as we continue along the trail, my bones feel like melted marshmallows.

We talk, laugh, and fall into comfortable silences. Meanwhile, the look in his eyes after we kissed is seared into my mind. But I refuse to read my desires into them, and deny what I saw there.

I need to guard my heart like a fortress because I know all about charades and facades, but my family never loved me but made sure they kept up the appearance of love and affection in the presence of outsiders.

I have to remind myself that our fake relationship is no different and tomorrow I’ll never see him again.

Then I receive a text.

Harvey’s name flashes across the screen.

We have to talk.

Silas

Mom loves her,Grady loves her, Miles loves her, Knox loves her, I love her, Mason loves her, Chloe loves her, I really fucking love her, Harper loves her.

Delilah wears jeans and an off-the-shoulder plain green sweater that highlights her curves. Her dazzling smile bumrushes my brain, leaving me drowning in my own imagination.

I badly want to fuck her, which isn’t something I need to be thinking about while I’m at the table with my family.

“These cinnamon rolls look amazing!” Chloe says.

“Thank you,” Delilah replies, laying the tray on the table.

“She’s a keeper for sure,” Miles says.

Mom places the main course at the center of the table—a succulent roast chicken, golden brown and glistening with savory juices. Chloe and Delilah chat away while they bring the mashed potatoes, green beans, and buttered rolls. I put out the utensils and plates.

“They really do look gorgeous,” Harper says about the cinnamon rolls.

All afternoon my kitchen was filled with the smell of her delicious cooking and I basked in the homely feel she brought to my cabin.

“I bet a big city girl like yourself doesn’t think much of our small town,” Mom says.

“Not at all, Mrs Draven. Silas showed me around town and then took me to Thunderbrook Falls. It’s a lovely place, and there seems to be tons to do around here.”

Delilah doesn’t know it but she just got herself into mom’s good books. My father put her through a lot and it was thanks to the people of Thunderbrook that she was able to make it through.

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