Page 71 of #Moonstruck

He gathered me in his arms, making a sound at the back of his throat that was deep and heart-flutteringly masculine. I had only a second to appreciate his strength and heat until one of his hands moved to hold my face. He stared into my eyes before his lips descended. This time it was fire. His mouth devastated mine, like a wildfire blazing, destroying, eating up everything in its path. He consumed me. I could only cling to him, unable to move or breathe as he burned.

Ryan inflamed every molecule in my body as he kissed me over and over again. My limbs seemed to melt away, leaving behind nothing but ash. I felt so deliciously light that I could have floated away.

The intense, crackling heat continued, turning my brain liquid and preventing any thought but this.I want more of this.

I wanted everything he could give me and more.

I’d imagined my attraction to him would diminish once we kissed. That I had built it up so much in my mind that reality couldn’t possibly compare.

Reality was a billion times better.

My mouth opened to his, and he somehow made the fire burn hotter. The flame twisted and twined inside me, taking all that I had to offer. He wanted everything I could give him, too, and more.

His hands were everywhere—on my neck, around my waist, on my back, pushing me closer. Wanting to scorch and brand me his.

To make sure I wouldn’t forget.

It was, without question, the most amazing kiss of my entire life. As if every other kiss before this one had been a rehearsal, and now I was finally playing for a sold-out stadium. Totally, completely unforgettable. I knew that even if I lived to be 107 years old, I would never forget for one second what this felt like.

It was better than when I played music, and I didn’t know that there was anything better than that.

I would never be the same again.

The fire had a song all its own, a frantic rhythm that thudded through my veins, and I could feel the same music inside Ryan. Beating, pulsating, and dancing in the same way. We kissed with a perfect harmony, like our duet onstage together. Flowing and soul-piercing and beyond anything else I’d ever known.

At the moment I felt like I couldn’t possibly take any more, that I would combust into a thousand glittery pieces, Ryan gentled the kiss. He made the fire he had stoked retreat, slowly dousing the flames until he softly, achingly, moved his mouth away from mine.

We were trying to catch our breaths, as the flames had consumed all the oxygen, leaving us without any to breathe.

I groaned in frustration, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt, not wanting him to stop. He still held me tightly.

“Hi,” he said, his voice tinged with desire that beckoned me to come closer.

“Hi,” I responded. My lungs were too constricted to allow me to say much beyond that.

“We, uh, have company.”

I turned my head in the direction he indicated. The entire arena had fallen silent. I had forgotten they were there. Where we were.

There had been only Ryan.

Then the audience exploded into applause and screams, louder than any I’d ever heard.

“Wait for me. In my dressing room.”

In that moment, Ryan could have asked me for anything and I would have said yes. I nodded.

He reluctantly released me, and I pulled my own hands free, stepping back.

“Ryan?”

“Yeah?”

I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face. “Thatwas the best thing that has ever happened to my mouth.”

He winked at me. “Told you.”

Then he went over to the microphone. “Maisy Harrison, everybody!”

---