Page 29 of Hidden
Obviously.
The instant his soft lips met mine, my own actions shocked me into immobility. Because it couldn’t be denied that in my anger, I had molested Damen. This was the worst.
But it was also the best feeling ever.
Kissing was both strange and exciting. An awkward second passed, and then another, and there was no response from my partner. But just as I was about to pull away and apologize profusely, Damen sprang to life.
His scent surrounded me, and the world faded as he pressed forward. His mouth moved over mine as he gained control and turned it against me.
The feel of his response rekindled my desire to touch him. This time I didn’t hesitate, and when Damen pushed me to the mattress, not breaking his mouth from mine, I was lost.
A burning spread where our mouths touched and despite being pinned to the bed and feeling the heavy weight of his hips over mine, I wasn’t scared at all. Instead, the contact made me yearn for more, and I pressed my hips into his. My fingers seemed to move on their own, unbuttoning his shirt as I sought out bare skin. A pulse raced through me as my palm brushed over the mark that was so much like mine.
I wasn’t the only one who lost control. His presence was everywhere. One hand pressed my hair away from my face and cupped the back of my head, and the fingers of his other entwined in my own.
And his kisses caused my toes to curl.
For the first time it occurred to me that he had been holding back, even when he’d been so pushy in the past.
I was breathless by the time he pulled back, but hardly had time to do more than inhale before his mouth trailed over my jaw. He grazed his teeth over my neck, while whispering words I couldn’t understand under his breath.
It was too much.
“What’s that?” I asked, surprised at how shaky my voice came out. “What are you saying?”
He froze, his mouth pressed over the corner of my jaw, before he pushed up. He held himself up with one arm. He continued touching me with his other hand, running his thumb over the hollow dip near my eye. “What’s wrong?”
“You were saying something,” I said. I didn’t want to break this moment, but at the same time, the blush that grew over Damen’s face intrigued me. “What was it?”
“Nothing,” Damen said, looking to the side.
Now I really needed to know. “What language was that?”
“None.” Damen continued to avoid my gaze.
He was wrong. It had sounded like how they spoke when using their abilities. “I’m pretty sure that was Chinese. Did you take Chinese?”
Damen’s gaze drifted back to me, to my mouth, but I put my finger to his lips before he could distract me. “Tell me.”
He groaned but didn’t move away as he responded. “We’ve been reincarnated into almost every culture. But in our first lives, we were born into what is now known as China. You must have realized this.”
“I have…” I was waiting for the real explanation. This explanation was obvious. Titus’s dragon form, the language, the way that the abilities were classified. “You’ve learned Chinese to honor that, or…”
“Even though we are reincarnations, it does not change who we are. I am Damen, you are Bianca.” Damen moved his hand from my face to hold himself with both arms over me. “But eventually, you’ll have memories from past lives. Some more than others, as some were less eventful. But the most prevalent life is our first, where I was Huo and you were Mu. That’s what laid the foundation for everything. Those are the first memories you’ll recollect, and which will influence you the most. And,” he said, holding up his finger now, cutting off the beginning of my interruption before it began, “certain things, such as language and mannerisms, carry over from those memories.”
“So.” This could be extremely favorable. If I ever made it back to school, my life in academia might not be lost. “I’m going to start knowing Chinese?”
“Yes.” Damen raised his eyebrow. I attempted to ignore his judgy look.
This was excellent. So much less studying would be required. “Don’t they have Chinese at our school?”
“You are not switching your foreign language elective to Chinese,” Damen drawled, the judgmental expression remaining. “That’s cheating.”
Yeah, he totally couldn’t stop me, it wasn’t like he had any authority at the college, nor of my person. But still… “You’re no fun.” I frowned at him.
“My father wouldn’t let me,” Damen said. “He said I’d be using an unfair advantage for—”
“That sounds like it’s your problem,” I interrupted, even more annoyed now. Because if his father had to refuse, it meant he’d tried. And now he was lecturing me? “No one can stop me from doing it, you’re not my dad.”
