Page 42 of Stay
“I want to kiss you.” There’s a beat of silence as my heart thunders against my breast. “If you tell me not to kiss you, I won’t.”
My gaze bounces from his lips to his eyes. Somehow, I know he isn’t the kind of guy who will force himself on me. He’s asking for permission, and he’ll be fine with whatever my decision is. It gives me a sense of control even though I don’t necessarily feel in control of the feelings careening through my body.
It’s almost a surprise when I hear the scrape of my own voice fill the stillness of the room. “I want you to kiss me.”
One side of his mouth lifts at the corner.
Drawing closer, his lips settle over mine. He caresses them gently, coaxing mine to open under the light pressure. His touch isn’t tentative or unsure, but it’s not overbearing either. The care he takes only makes me want him more. Something that feels suspiciously like warmed honey slides through me as he continues to play havoc with my mouth. He doesn’t shove his tongue down my throat or get carried away.
He nibbles at my lips, all the while using light, teasing strokes that feather across mine. A whimper escapes from me as he continues the torment. There is nothing demanding or punishing about the kiss.
If there had been, I’d start panicking. Instead, what he’s doing makes me want to move closer. I’m tempted to run my tongue along the seam of his lips and explore his mouth the way I’ve secretly dreamed of doing since our first meeting.
I have no idea how long we lay there, wrapped up in each other. Our bodies pressed so close that I feel every hard line and taut muscle. Our lips continue to touch, stroking over the another until I’m drunk with the taste of him.
When I don’t think I can stand another moment, his tongue flicks the corner of my mouth and I moan. The sound that escapes is low, achy, and full of need. Cole groans in response. He nips at my bottom lip, sucking the fullness into his mouth. His hands cradle my face, never straying.
It’s his restraint that propels me into rubbing my body against his, craving both the closeness and friction.
He continues to nibble and lick at my lips until I want to scream with the tension that has settled in every muscle. Even though I’m nervous, my tongue darts out to lick at his lips. Arousal bursts to life in my core as I dip inside his mouth. It doesn’t take long before our teeth are scraping against each other.
The way he makes me feel is almost a revelation. I haven’t been interested in guys, or sex, in a long time. Almost a year. Since the desire hasn’t been there, I haven’t bothered with…well, let’s just say, I haven’t felt the need to take matters into my own hands, and leave it at that.
As quickly as those thoughts enter my mind, they scatter to the wind as Cole teases my senses by sucking my tongue into his mouth. Silently, I admit that maybe he’s right. Maybe this isn’t a mistake. How could anything that’s wrong feel this amazing?
I’m not sure how long we explore each other’s mouth. All I know is that the first fingers of light begin to stretch across the horizon when I finally fall asleep in Cole’s arms. I can’t deny the odd contentment that settles over me.
Unwilling to question it, I do the only thing I can and snuggle up against him, allowing myself to relax before drifting off to sleep.
12
CASSIDY
My brows are knit tightly together as I glance suspiciously around before asking, “What are we doing here?”
It’s a few minutes before five o’clock in the morning, and the ice arena is closed. The lights are off, the concession stand is locked up tight, there’s not even a maintenance guy on duty to question our presence.
Even though this isn’t the first time I’ve posed the question, Cole remains tight-lipped. The only thing he said is that it’s a surprise.
The first wave of questions fell from my lips as we stood outside the arena, and I realized it wasn’t open. That’s when Cole had produced a key. I’m not going to lie, it had struck me as a little bit sketchy. The last thing I need is a police record to go along with the other crap I put my parents through. They’d probably disown me.
Officially.
But I trust Cole.
I do.
He doesn’t strike me as a guy who engages in criminal activity. Right now, I can only hope I’m not wrong about that. Then again, he’s never done anything to warrant my mistrust.
My mind tumbles back to Friday night.
And all the time we spent kissing.
The time spent in his bed had been—for lack of a better word—hot.
Arousal coils tight in my core just thinking about it. I’ve never spent that much time kissing someone. Even though it had been tempting to take it further, I’m glad we hadn’t.
One thing is for sure—Cole knows how to kiss. His lips are soft, yet firm. Who knew that just licking and nipping at someone’s mouth could be so erotic?
