Page 23 of Burn Like An Angel

He can’t, though.

No one can.

A hot flush of toe-curling need sweeps over me. With the pain I’m in, I didn’t think it would be possible. Yet the feel of Raine pleading with his mouth is enough to set my core alight.

Gripping his hair, I take control of the kiss. Raine backs up into the bathroom wall, trapped by my dominance. Fuck casual. Fuck whatever the hell we’ve spent months doing. I want him. I need him. I fuckingmissedhim.

The low moan from his throat tells me just how much power I hold over him. All this time, I thought giving in to my feelings for Raine would make me weak. That allowing him to matter would expose a vulnerability.

I didn’t stop to consider the possibility that having people who care about you does entirely the opposite. It isn’t aweakness to love or be loved. Those connections are actually what make us strong.

Breaking the kiss, I press our foreheads together. Raine catches his breath, nose nudging mine as he chuckles lightly.

“Now that was a kiss.”

I huff out a breath. “Smug, much?”

“Always, babe.”

“Alright. Enough of that.”

“Just reminding you that I was here first.” He gently kisses me again, his citrus scent caressing me. “And I meant what I said before.”

“Which part?”

“That I’m not going anywhere.”

Leaving me reeling, Raine tentatively moves to the door to retrieve the clothes left for us. I suck in a breath at the thought of the two complications sitting in the medical wing. They may have something to say about Raine’s promise.

I can’t begin to fathom what either of them want from me. Xander hasn’t exactly made his intentions clear since we slept together. Not to mention the clusterfuck that’s me and Lennox.

“I can’t tell what’s yours and what’s mine,” he complains.

“Here. Let me look.”

Taking the bundle from Raine, I search through the detergent-scented clothes. There’s a pair of well-worn jeans and a t-shirt that looks around Raine’s size, then some stretchy leggings for me with a man’s shirt.

“Guessing you don’t fancy second-hand yoga pants?”

He scoffs under his breath. “I reckon I could pull them off.”

“No one needs to see that.”

“Don’t you think this ass would look good in Lycra?”

Biting my lip, I silently laugh as he strips off his medical gown, exposing slender limbs and tightly-packed abdominalsthat make my throat seize. He’s slimmer than the others but no less attractive.

Raine clumsily steps into the jeans, refusing to ask for my assistance. They’re much looser than his usual, tight style. Rips and scuffs mark the old denim.

“The leggings would look better,” I comment.

“Stop being a shit stirrer and strip.”

With a blonde brow cocked, he stretches out his hands in offering. I snort, stepping into his space so he can help me ease off the filthy shirt I’m still wearing. The way it clings to my skin makes me want to hurl.

Langley may have cleaned and bandaged my wrists before he hooked me up to the IV, but apparently, he didn’t dare to strip me off. I’m thankful there’s still some boundaries left between us.

“I’d kill for a shower right about now.”

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