Page 19 of Luke

It disturbed him that she still knew things about him no one else knew.

"I've changed," he told her. "I'm not the twenty-year-old kid you used to know."

"I'm not that twenty-year-old girl, either, and maybe that's a good thing. We can handle this situation like adults. Then we can both get what we want."

"What we both want," he mused, as her blue eyes flickered under his gaze. Suddenly what he wanted was extremely clear. He moved forward, putting his hands on her hips, drawing her close.

"Not that," she protested.

"Definitely that," he whispered, putting his mouth on hers.

* * *

She could not believe Luke was kissing her. Was she dreaming? It certainly felt like it.

Tingles ran down her spine as her mouth opened under his and smoldering desires came rushing back. His kiss was the same and yet it was different. It felt familiar and also new. But, as always, his mouth on hers was a head-spinning and heartbreaking experience.

It had never taken much to go from zero to a hundred miles an hour when it came to Luke. The barest touch had always ignited a firestorm within her and today was no different. In fact, it was worse, because it had been so long, and she'd missed him so much.

She loved the way his mouth took command, the way his tongue danced with hers, the heat that rose between them, the feel of his hands on her body as he pulled her closer, as he refused to let her catch her breath, think, pull away. One impatient, needy, searching kiss followed the next.

She knew she should stop the madness and push him away. No good could come of this. She wasn't crazy about him anymore, was she? She wasn't reckless or impulsive. She couldn't afford to be.

But it felt too good to stop.

Luke reminded her of…the way she used to be. Young, hopeful, passionate, filled with dreams, sure that happiness was just around the corner, and that love would be shared with Luke. They'd met young. It had seemed amazing to have met someone who touched her body and her heart and her soul in such a special way at such a young age.

She'd been so in love with him. He'd promised her the moon and the stars, and she'd promised to be his sun.

And then it had all come crashing down.

That's what she needed to remember—not the happiness but the pain.

She finally pulled away, her heart beating too fast, her blood rushing through her veins, her nerves still clamoring for more.

Luke looked back at her with desire in his intense brown eyes. He wanted her.

Her stomach twisted. It wasn't fair that she could still want him, too, after so many years.

She let out a breath and tried to calm herself down. Tucking her hair behind her ears, she was acutely aware of how she could still taste Luke on her lips.

She wanted to look away from him, but she didn't want him to think that she was as bothered as she was. She just wished his gaze would move somewhere else. But that was Luke. He'd always looked right at her. He'd always seen the real her. At least, that's what she'd thought, but in the end, he'd only seen what he needed, not what she needed.

Another breath moved her chest. She had to break the silence. "So…that happened," she said somewhat helplessly.

"Yeah."

"Why did you kiss me, Luke?" It was a foolish question, but she couldn't stop it from crossing her lips.

"Why did you kiss me back?" he countered.

"You caught me off guard."

"That's not the reason." He paused. "I kissed you, because I've been thinking about it since I saw you come out of the lodge this morning. I wanted to know if it would be the same."

She supposed she'd wanted to know that, too. She waited for him to say it was or it wasn't, but he remained oddly silent. He dug his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels as his gaze finally moved away from her.

"We should go back," she said. "I have work to do. And you're probably tired from the drive up here."

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