Page 64 of The Lady Was Lying
“What?” He scrambled to follow her logic as his head spun. How had she jumped from no to yes in the span of ten seconds?
No matter what her reasoning, she was putting him in an impossible situation. His conscience screamed at him to tell her no, step away, and give her space, but he couldn’t do that to her. Not again. If she was going to take a chance on him, then he had to be willing to do the same. “Are you sure?”
“Not at all. But that’s why we have to do it. Right here. Right now.”
The pressure rose. Tension settled between them. Had there ever been a kiss that carried more weight than the one they were about to share?
Heart thundering in his chest, he asked, “What if…you kissed me?”
“But—”
“—you could be completely in control.”
“I’m always in control.” The waver in her voice contradicted her confident words.
“If you kissed me, we could be sure that I don’t overwhelm you. Or read the signs wrong.” He paused when he noticed the way her jaw had clenched. “Or?—”
“—you won’t overwhelm me.”
“If I do, will you tell me?”
“I’m not as good at recognizing my emotions as you might think, but I’ll try to be transparent with you.” It was the best she could do. Lying at this point wouldn’t serve either of them.
Her nerves were noticeably absent as his hand settled at her nape and his breath ghosted across her lips. She exhaled steadily, their breath mingling, and placed her hands on his chest. It was firm, even through layers of clothing. Her eyes drifted shut and then sprang open again as she continued to lean closer and closer until his lush bottom lip brushed against her top one. They both stilled at the contact and let themselves acclimate while they shared the same air.
Finally, as if planned, they both tipped their heads slightly to their right and he closed the distance between them, pressing his lips against hers. Their mouths stayed closed while gentle pressure was exerted.
The kiss was tame. Almost awkward.
But not unpleasant.
Experimentally, she moved her lips. Not much, but enough that his parted and their mouths slotted together. The gentle suction of him tugging her bottom lip a bit further into his mouth caused a stirring in her chest.
A whimper escaped from her throat, and he released her lips.
“Too much?” he asked, his breath dancing over her cheek.
“No. At least, I don’t think so.”
The desolation she normally experienced while kissing was absent, and she was almost certain she wanted to keep kissing him. It wasn’t necessarily desire, at least not as she had imagined it, but it wasn’t indifference either.
He gently pressed his lips against the soft skin below her ear.
“What if I do this?” he asked.
“That is good,” she murmured, letting him explore a bit more before her lips found the tip of his nose.
“Very nice,” he encouraged, shifting so he could lightly kiss her eyelid.
They kept trading tender, almost feather-light kisses, murmuring encouragement as they went. He had just touched his lips to the corner of her mouth when she shifted and pressed her lips fully against his. “Kiss me for real,” she whispered.
“It’s all real,” he murmured in return.
Was it? Could kissing be…peaceful?
It was difficult to reconcile her past experiences with the present. She’d spent so many years believing that kissing needed to be fully encompassing that she’d never stopped to consider what it might be like to share softness and gentleness.
The kisses they were trading weren’t about passion, at least not as she understood it. Instead, they were steeped in tenderness.
