Page 117 of Cursed Evermore
“So your facts are right. You see…” He took a slow, deliberate step closer, those eyes locked on mine with dangerous intent. “Describing a kiss as cruel and damning when nothing of the sort happened would skew your notes.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Oh, but it does.”
“Why?” I gave him a thin stare, hoping he’d see the bizarreness in this conversation.
“Because that was me being gentle. If I gave you a cruel,damningkiss you’d know the difference and we wouldn’t be standing here arguing about it.” He came closer, closing the distance between us.
“Wouldn’t we?” The words escaped before I could stop them, my heart racing, stuck in a maddening beat.
“No. We wouldn’t.” He dipped his head and his nose brushed over mine. “You’d be trembling. Your body would still be burning from it. Still craving more. Still yearning for my lips on yours as if you need me to live.”
The air left my lungs in a silent rush, making my breath shallow. Fire raced through my veins as his words painted images I shouldn't want, couldn't want. But my body betrayed me anyway.
My pulse raced, knees weakened, and every inch of me yearned for exactly what he'd just described.
I gripped the towel tighter, terrified it might slip, terrified I might reach for him instead.
He was close enough to do it. To kiss me. To give me arealcruel, damning kiss. Gods, what would such a kiss feel like? I had a feeling it would ruin me.
Wolfe lifted his hand, pressed one finger to my cheek and watched me in that way that made it hard to breathe. “Part of me wishes that I’d truly kissed you that way. Part of me still wants to.”
My lungs locked and I could feel my pulse throbbing in places I didn't want to acknowledge. His fingers slipped under my chin and guided my lips higher, nearly meeting his. Then he just stared at me and his gaze dropped to my lips. For a second, I thought he might close the gap. I thought he might fall with me.
My lips parted involuntarily and I felt myself swaying toward him. Even my rational thoughts were pushing me toward him.
“I should leave.” He spoke with quiet restraint, his voice was so soft I barely registered that he spoke.
“You… said you couldn’t go there with me,” I whispered.
His jaw clenched and he moved a fraction closer. “But I never said I didn’t want to.”
For one breathless heartbeat, our lips met in the barest of kisses. One perfect, devastating moment. Lightning spread through my veins at the mere contact and my body melted into his, searching for more.
But then the fire popped. A sharp crack that hissed in the hearth. The sound made us jerk apart as if burned. The moment between us broken.
We stared at each other, frozen in the flickering firelight. Both breathing hard as silence stretched between us, heavy with unspoken desire and the weight of what we'd just done.
Wolfe’s eyes searched mine filling with darkness that clouded the metal blue. I saw something break in his expression, a crack in that perfect control.
“Ziyka...” He whispered the endearment like a prayer and a curse, his canines lengthened.
Then shadows surrounded him and he was gone. Just like that he was gone, disappearing into the darkness.
My heart hammered against my ribs and my knees buckled.
Gods.What in the hells just happened?
We almost kissed. No, wedidkiss. It was a barely there kiss where his lips had brushed mine but it still happened. And then there was what he said.
Trembling, I sat onto the edge of the bed and stared into the crackling fire. What would have happened if we didn’t get interrupted? I didn’t think the night would have ended with a kiss.
How was I to be careful when I couldn’t even trust myself?
With a ragged sigh I put on a nightdress and crawled into bed. Better to go to sleep. After what just happened all my mental energy was gone, so it would be pointless journaling.
Sleep was my only sanctuary. The place where I could escape reality.
