Page 26 of Pillowtalk

“You wanted to try,” he said, and the vibrations of his deep voice ricocheted against her heart, widened her eyes, stole her breath. She froze in his arms, taken aback by just how wonderful it was to finally,finallyhear a voice on the other end of her conversations. It was a reminder that her imagination paled in comparison to the real thing—and she was absolutely appalled that she even thought that anyone could compare to Jared, that anyone could even come close.

She shook her head, angry with herself for enjoying another voice, wanting another body, and needing it so very much.

Aaron lifted a hand off her back and cupped her cheek. She closed her eyes, relishing the sensation of such a strong and caring touch. It had been so long, and she wanted it so badly, so while she was guilt-ridden for feeling so strongly in a different man’s arms, it was too good, too comforting, to stop.

Her other hand let go of the urn and touched Aaron’s hand on her face, her fingers curling in between his. She felt his breath quicken, heard the hesitation in his voice when he said, “It’s gonna be all right.”

She lifted her head and met his gaze, both uncertain and reassuring. His hand twitched against her neck, and his thumb ran over her cheek as it wiped away a tear. She wanted to believe him, but she wasn’t sure if he believed it himself.

“Is it?” she asked in a small voice that could only have been heard in their tight cocoon.

His lips parted, and Kennedy held her breath as he contemplated his answer. He finally shook his head, one shoulder lifting.

“I don’t know.” His fingers trailed back into her hair, sending trembles through her spine. “But I’ll try to make it all right.”

The tiniest of smiles pushed at the corners of her mouth, and her hand slid down the length of his muscular, safe arm. Her mind was drifting, the scale weighing in Aaron’s favor, and a sense of calm ran from her crown and trickled down her entire body.

“It’s working,” she answered, and an equally small smile appeared on his lips as he coaxed her forehead to meet his. He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply, like he needed her comfort just as much as she needed his. She wasn’t sure how much comfort she could provide, as she herself was crumbling into tiny pieces in his hands, but she held on to him nonetheless, hoping that she could in some way give him what he was so aptly giving her.

Her eyelids fell closed, and she soaked in the simple quiet for a moment before she felt her heart beating so hard that she could barely contain it. His touch was so warm, sorealand genuine, that she told herself thatthiswas where she could easily ride out the storm. A much better alternative than being curled up in utter sorrow and loneliness.

A single raindrop plinked against the urn in her lap, and she shifted so that it was protected by the canopy of their bodies. Aaron must have thought she was untangling herself, because he began to move away, but Kennedy’s hold on his collar tightened and reeled him back in. She wasn’t ready to feel so cold and alone, and with his breath an inch away, his chest moving up and down, and his hands rubbing comforting circles against her, she felt sowhole. He was not the ghost of a touch that she was trying to remember; he was alive and breathing and tangible. It was horrible that she felt the way she did, but while those thoughts niggled at her, there was something much stronger quieting them, holding her in place.

She breathed in, stomach twirling at the familiar scent of nutmeg that she’d linked with Aaron just in the short time she’d known him. Her hand slid from his collar to the beating pulse in his neck, the coarse five o’clock shadow along his chin tickling the pads of her fingers. She felt him swallow hard, and his breathing quickened as her hand couldn’t help but revel in the feel of his skin. She opened her eyes, terrified, knowing that the need to get even closer was slowly overpowering every part of her body she still had control over.

The gorgeous fire in his eyes looked just as fearful, just as hesitant, just as needy as she was. His fingers dug into her hair, pulling at the hood barely covering her head. A raindrop fell onto her shoulder, another on her knee. She saw several hit Aaron’s clothing and soak into the fabric. It was the perfect cue to pull back, to head in for shelter, but neither made a move away from each other. They were two silent rocks in a raging sea of emotions.

Kennedy inched closer just as Aaron did the same, their shared breath making her skin flush with a blazing heat. She closed her eyes and waited, too afraid to be the one to close the gap. Aaron let out a short, hesitant breath before he gently pressed his soft lips against hers in a slow, tentative kiss that made her heart fly straight from her chest and into the clouded sky…where it would stay, protected and safe, while her body indulged in a sweet comfort she didn’t know was possible. She met his slow movements, unsure of what was right, what was wrong, only knowing that this was what she needed, what she feltheneeded, and she was more than willing to give it to him in that moment.

Heat bubbled in her lower abdomen, and she pulled him closer, drinking in the press of his lips and the bristle of his close-cut scruff. Her thoughts stumbled over one another as his touch grew more urgent, her body reacting in a way that it hadn’t in a long time. The rain pattered down around them, the only thing cooling her body from the fire that Aaron created in her. She clutched him, a shiver running up her spine at the contrasting sensations. His strong hands held just as frantically, pressing her chest into his.

She wanted him to deepen the kiss, even tested the waters by tapping the crease in his lips with her tongue, but there was still a sense of trepidation in his actions. In her muddled thoughts she realized it was probably better that way. There was so much uncertainty surrounding her, surrounding the both of them, and she knew without a doubt that once they parted, she’d be tormented with regret and guilt.

So she held on to him for as long as she could, even as the rain started beating over them, because she knew that when they stopped, her heart might sink back down, into a worse spot than it had been in before.

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