Page 12 of Bite of Midnight
“I know,” I murmur against her skin. “I shouldn’t.” I kiss her again anyway. Slower this time. Open-mouthed. Reverent. I taste her, warmth, skin, a hint of sugar from her drink. I could get drunk on that alone. Her whole body leans back into me like instinct.
That’s it. The last of my restraint snaps.
I bracket her in with my arms, palms flat on the stone rail on either side of her hands. My chest is pressed to her back now, my hips aligned with hers, no space left to pretend we’re being polite. She’s breathing harder again, but not from panic this time.
I speak against her throat. “Tell me to stop.”
Her head tips back against my shoulder. “I don’t want you to.”
That’s all I need.
I turn her, smoothing my hands to her waist, guiding her to face me. Her wings brush the railing, a soft whisper of fabric and shimmer. She looks up at me, pupils blown wide, lips parted like she’s waiting to be kissed. Beautiful doesn’t cover it. She’s fate wearing a yellow dress.
I lean in slow enough to make sure she can pull away. She doesn’t.
Our mouths meet. The first brush of her lips is soft, testing, like she’s not sure if she’s allowed to want this as much as she does. I groan into it, not because I mean to, but because I can’t not. The sound vibrates through both of us, and after that there’s nothing careful left.
She makes this quiet, helpless noise and rises onto her toes, fingers fisting in my jacket like she’s afraid I’ll disappear if she doesn’t hold on. As if I’d go anywhere. As if I could.
I deepen the kiss. I’m careful with everything else in my life. Calculated. Controlled. Not with her.
My mouth moves over hers, hungry and grateful. I taste her, and my entire body lights up like something holy. She opens for me, and the way she does it, trusting, easy, kills me. I slide a hand up her spine and feel her shiver all the way through.
I need her closer. I grab her hips and lift. She lets out a soft gasp that turns into a breathy laugh against my mouth, surprised but not scared, and I set her on the wide stone railing of the balcony. She fits there perfectly, wings shifting around her, dress riding up just a little over her thighs. Now we’re eye level. Now I can cage her in completely.
My hands bracket her again, one on her hip, one at the base of her neck. I step between her knees and claim her mouth all over again, deeper this time, slower, not asking anymore. Her fingers slide up into my hair. That tiny, possessive touch ends me.
This is mine, something in me snarls. Mine.
I kiss her like a starving thing finally given mercy. She answers like she’s been waiting too, like she’s been missing me without knowing why. The night air is cold, her skin is warm, her pulse steady under my mouth, and that’s the only sound in the world I care about.
I pull back just enough to breathe, my forehead resting against hers. She’s flushed and gorgeous, chest rising fast, lips kiss-swollen. Her eyes find mine. “Wow,” she whispers.
My voice comes out rough. “You have no idea what you’re doing to me, Calla.”
She smiles, dazed. “I think I’m starting to.”
If she knew what I am, she’d run. If she knew what I want, she’d blush. If she knew what she is to me… I stroke my thumb along her jaw, memorizing the shape of her like I’ll never get to touch her again. “You tell me if you’re too warm. Too lightheaded. Anything. I’ll take care of you.”
Her gaze flickers, softens. “I know.”
That, right there. Trust. That’s what makes me shake. Because I’ve already decided. I’m never letting her go.
Her hands slide up my chest, fingers curling in my jacket. For a heartbeat, we just stare at each other, her breath brushing my lips, her pulse fluttering in her throat like a trapped bird. Then she moves. She shifts closer, her knees brushing my hips, and before I can think, her legs slide around my waist, pulling us flush together.
The sound that leaves me isn’t human, a low, broken sound from somewhere deep in my chest.
“Calla,” I manage, but she’s already leaning down, closing the distance, kissing me again. This one isn’t soft. It’s certain. Her fingers find the back of my neck and hold me there while her mouth moves against mine, slow, deliberate, like she’s learning me one breath at a time.
I brace my hands against the stone rail behind her, caging her in without meaning to. Every movement drags her closer until there’s no air left between us, just the steady thrum of her heart and the soft sound of her breath catching in sync with mine.
When she finally pulls back, her lips are parted, her eyes wide and shining. “I don’t know what this is,” she whispers, “but it doesn’t feel wrong.”
I rest my forehead against hers, trying to catch a breath I don’t need. “It’s not wrong,” I whisper back. “It’s exactly what it’s meant to be.”
Her pulse quickens again, and I know she feels it too, the pull neither of us can name yet. I kiss her once more, softer this time, because if I don’t stop now, I won’t stop at all.
Her breath brushes my lips when she whispers, almost to herself, “Why does it feel like I’ve known you my entire life?”
