The moment my lips touch his, I think I’ve reached another level of existence—one I had no idea existed. They’re so soft and warm but have an underlying hardness like the rest of him.
I move my mouth against his closed one and even dart my tongue out to lick his lower lip. It’s hesitant and awkward at best, but I don’t stop.
I can’t.
God. He tastes even better than my forbidden fantasies.
He doesn’t open his mouth or kiss me back, and his entire body turns to granite against mine.
Since I’ve witnessed him box with Dad countless times, I know he has a body of steel, but actually feeling his abs contracting against me is an experience all on its own.
If I could stay here for a lifetime, I’d choose to in a heartbeat.
Hell, I’m ready to accept the inevitable bursts of emptiness if it means I get to live this moment over and over again. If I get to exist here for whatever remaining years I have to live.
However, my small moment of ecstasy is brought to a halt when I’m pulled back by a fistful of my hair.
I tilt my head back to keep it from pulling as I stare at his harsh eyes. There’s a savage darkness in them that matches the tightness of his fingers in my hair. It’s a black, deep current and I’m trapped right in the middle of it.
“Don’t ever do that again. Understood?”
My lips tremble and I can’t help licking them—and his taste. Nate’s eyes zero in on the gesture and a muscle tightens in his solid jaw. It’s such a small movement, but it feels so huge right now, so important.
“Say you understand, Gwyneth,” he says, still staring at my lips before he slides his gaze to my mismatched eyes.
“I-I understand.”
If I expected those words to placate him, they don’t. His jaw flexes one more time and he shoves me away, releasing his firm, delicious hold on my hair.
He shakes his head at me once, then turns around and leaves. His strides are long and sure, but there’s something different this time; like the tension in his shoulders.
I watch his back, licking my lips and fingering the bracelet, and a tear slides down my cheek as I murmur, “Happy birthday to me.”
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