Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 45996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
When we finally break apart he rests his forehead against mine, breathing hard. His eyes are still stormy but the edge of panic has softened.
"You," he says quietly. "You’re what I need right now, Sadie. Just you."
I don’t have a clever comeback or a rule to hide behind. I hold on tighter and let him pull me into another kiss, slower this time, with the kind of patience that tells me he’s been waiting. The safe house is quiet around us. The ocean keeps rolling outside. And for the first time since we arrived in Sunbreak Harbor, I stop worrying about what comes next and let myself feel exactly where I am.
Right here. With him. And I’m not going anywhere.
13
Jace
I pull back from the kiss slowly, my forehead still resting against hers, both of us breathing hard. My hands are still on her, one at the back of her neck, the other at her waist, and I can feel the rapid beat of her pulse under my thumb. The shock of seeing my father is still roaring inside me, but Sadie in my arms is the one thing keeping me from being swept away by it.
I hope she doesn’t take this kiss the wrong way.
The words come out rough, honest in a way I usually save for my brothers. "I hope you don’t take this kiss the wrong way. Like I’m using you to take my mind off seeing my father alive."
She shakes her head immediately, her hands still fisted in my shirt. Her voice is soft but steady, that serious tone she gets when she’s cutting through bullshit. "No. I didn’t think that."
Good. The relief that hits me is sharp and real. I lean in again, close enough that my lips brush hers when I speak. "Good. Because I’ve wanted you since I first saw you."
Her eyes widen a fraction, then darken with the same heat that’s been building between us since the beach. Since the Jeep ride. Since that quick kiss on my cheek last night that’s been driving me insane. I don’t wait for her to answer with words. I kiss her again, deeper this time, and she meets me with the same urgency.
We stumble backward toward the bedroom without breaking the kiss. My hands slide under the hem of her shirt, palms skimming the warm, smooth skin of her back. She tastes like sunshine and something sweeter that’s just her. The sound of our breathing fills the quiet safe house, mixed with the distant roll of waves against the sand. I back her up until her legs hit the edge of the bed, then ease her down onto the mattress.
She pulls me with her, and I go willingly, settling between her thighs. The kiss turns hotter, messier. My tongue slides against hers and she makes this soft sound in the back of her throat that awakens something deep inside me. I’m hard already, aching, but this isn’t about me right now. This is about her. About giving her something good after the madness I dragged her into today.
I break the kiss to trail my mouth down her neck, nipping lightly at the spot below her ear that makes her shiver. My hands work her shirt up and off, tossing it somewhere on the floor. She’s not wearing a bra. The sight of her bare breasts, the way they rise and fall with her quick breaths, nearly undoes me. I cup one in my palm, thumb brushing over the tight peak, and she arches into my touch.
"Look at you," I murmur against her skin, voice low and a little rough with want. "So fucking beautiful. I have been thinking about this since the beach. Since I saw you in that navy bikini and realized I was in trouble."
She laughs softly, the sound breathless, and tugs at my shirt. I strip it off and come back to her, skin to skin now. The feel of her against me is better than I imagined. Warm. Soft in all the right places. I kiss my way down her chest, taking one nipple into my mouth and sucking gently while my hand teases the other. Her fingers thread through my hair, holding me there, and the little gasps she makes are the best sound I’ve heard all day.
I keep moving lower, kissing across her stomach, my hands sliding down to the button of her jeans. I look up at her as I pop it open, giving her time to stop me if she wants. She doesn’t. Her eyes are dark, lips parted, and she lifts her hips to help me slide the denim and her underwear down her legs. I toss them aside and settle between her thighs again, this time with nothing between us.
The sight of her laid out like this, open and trusting and so goddamn perfect, hits me harder than I expect. I run my hands up the insides of her thighs, spreading her wider, and she makes another one of those soft sounds that I want to record and play on repeat.