Page 17 of Veiled in Brick

James threw his head back, groaned loudly, and chucked the rose into the fire. I watched it as the flames contorted it, shriveling the petals to nothing, and he said in a forcedly calm voice:

“We’re burning these.”

I looked back at him, but his gaze was focused on the fire. “Was that the plan?”

“Yeah,” he snarkily replied. “That was the plan. I thought it would be fun—”

Relief engulfed me, and I ordered, “Give me one.”

His head snapped to face me, and I gave him a wide smile, holding out my hand for a flower.

His perturbed expression softened. “Oh, now you want one?”

I stuck out my lower lip in a pout and cooed, “Please.”

James grabbed another rose from his left hand and pointed it at me, petal end first.

He smirked. “Only because you said please—and you know how much I like that word.”

I held the flower in front of my face and observed it briefly, asking, “Do you, now?”

“Mhm,” he hummed back. “It reminds me of how polite you are.”

I chortled and tossed the rose into the flames. “I’m polite?”

He held a bundle of baby’s breath to his nose and inhaled deeply.

“Oh, only when I’m fucking you,” he replied, glancing at me with a crooked grin. “You’re very polite when I’m inside of you.”

The sudden mention of our actions from the night prior made my jaw drop, and I beamed as the baby’s breath found its way into the blaze. It burned quicker than the roses did, the flames being stoked briefly before dying back down.

“Am I?” I asked him, and his grey eyes lit up at the memory.

He hummed a deep noise. “Please, James—fuck me, please—please, touch me,” he recited my incantations. “I do like a girl with manners.”

The way that his voice dipped down low as he remembered it made me flush.

I stuck a hand out. “Baby’s breath,” I requested. “Please.”

“Of course,” he responded, offering me a small bundle of white flowers. I grasped them, and when he refused to let them go, I looked into his eyes. He smiled. “Having fun now?” I nodded, and he released his grip to allow me to toss them to the fire. The flames flashed with the additional kindle, and James asked, “So, do I owe you?”

I chuckled at his mention of my gentle threat from earlier today. “Not this time.”

His eyes crinkled at the corners, his gaze bouncing across my face. I allowed myself to do the same, taking in how he was examining my expression. He gravitated a bit closer to me, focus now intent on my mouth, and I reached up to touch my hand to the back of his neck. His smile widened as I pulled his lips to mine.

The kiss was far too brief, and he pulled away from me with a smack, looking down at me curiously.

“Do you like marshmallows?”

I felt my head tilt to the side. “Why?”

“I have an emergency stash in the car,” he whispered.

“You have marshmallows in your car?”

He shrugged. “I camp frequently.”

I laughed. “You should have led with the sugar rush.”

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