Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22032 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 110(@200wpm)___ 88(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22032 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 110(@200wpm)___ 88(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
"I'm not making a move on you. I'm wooing you. I want forever with you." I reach up and wrap my hand around her soft cheek.
Eloise's eyes widen, and for a moment, she looks like a deer caught in headlights. I can see the wheels turning in her head as she processes my words. Finally, she speaks, her voice soft and uncertain. "Forever? Are you insane?"
"I know I’m fucking crazy. Crazy for you."
A myriad of emotions flit across her face, and I can see the struggle playing out behind her eyes. Then, slowly, a smile begins to form, and she takes a step forward. "You're right, it does seem crazy," she whispers, her smile growing. "But I think I might be just as crazy for you." And with that, she smiles up at me. "But we need to take things back a few steps. You know, maybe date a little before we start planning the wedding."
“We can do that.” He smiles and slowly bends down to kiss my lips.
Atlas moves with unexpected intensity, erasing the distance between us until his words and his kiss blur together in my mind. Time unravels as his strong arms bind me to him, as my name carries into my mouth and changes into a moan. His kiss drives all the thoughts from my mind, and it's a good thing his body is holding mine steady because my knees threaten to give out. My skin tingles as if nothing exists except him and his firm, warm lips.
This is no tentative exploration. This is not a shy foray into testing boundaries. This is possession, a fierce declaration that makes me breathless and needy and suddenly unwilling to exist apart from his touch. It’s impossible, overwhelming, and yet it feels so perfectly right. His fingers weave into my hair as if claiming everything I am, and I respond without thought or restraint, giving him every soft sound and eager answer he demands. The dizzy rush of it makes me forget to breathe.
Minutes, hours, entire lifetimes—none of it matters. All that exists is the magnetic pull between us, the singular sensation of being entirely his. I’m drifting through the fire and thunder of Atlas, every part of me weightless and unconcerned, except where his warmth meets mine and the collision sends me spiraling. I tighten my hold around his neck, desperate and wanting, barely knowing where my body ends and his begins.
He's solid and real, more than a memory and so much better than any dream. It’s like the past never happened, like every heartache and disappointment was just preparation for this consuming kiss. I thought I knew what to expect, but nothing prepared me for the wild storm of emotions that threaten to consume me as his mouth demands more and more. He kisses me like it’s a vow, a promise that echoes all the way to my fingertips.
We collapse onto the couch in a glorious tangle of breathless energy and tangled limbs before I even realize we moved from my bedroom to the living room. Atlas laughs as my hair falls over his eyes and as my body lies undignified in a heap on top of him. I'm lost in the sensation of everything. I can't tell if my heart is pounding from the kiss or from how I feel when he says "forever."
"I can't believe this is happening," I mutter more to myself than to him. "I thought..." I don't even know what I thought.
He interrupts, "You thought I'd give up that easily?" There's no hesitation, and the way he brushes my cheek with his thumb makes me dizzy all over again.
He gives me a look that makes me feel like I've landed on some new, wondrous planet. "Not a chance, Eloise." He tests out the sound of it again, softer. "Not a fucking chance."
We're supposed to be serious, I think, but there's a catch in his voice and a light in his eyes that makes it impossible. I'm breathing hard and unable to decide if it’s from how close I am to Atlas or how far away I feel from any kind of sense. The warmth of him, the possibility of him, of us, makes me too lightheaded to worry. I let the truth and surprise fly. "I really like you," I say, knowing it sounds so pathetically unworthy of the thundering rush inside me.
"Good." He grins. "That's going to make this easier."
"This?" I ask, an easy giggle escaping my lips.
Atlas pulls me closer, like it's the most natural thing in the world, and says it again, like it's the only word that matters. "Us."
"Us," I repeat, loving the way it feels, the way it scares and thrills me.
His lips envelop mine, igniting a surge of electricity that shoots down my spine like a bolt of lightning. His tongue explores my mouth with an urgency that makes my mind melt into a blissful haze.