18
The first touch of skin to skin was exhilarating. Although it had only been a few weeks, it felt like I'd been waiting for this forever. Yet somehow it also felt like we'd been doing this for years. I inhaled deeply, taking in his scent as I took in air. The sensations, the taste, the smell — all of it was so foreign, but so familiar.
His tongue swiped for entrance. Clenching his hair in my fist, I opened up to him. Our tongues battled, hot and slick. He gripped me tighter, clutching me to him as if afraid I would float away with the slightest nudge.
I couldn't say I blamed him. Our entire relationship up until now had been all push and pull, all hot and cold. No wonder he was afraid I'd back out.
But that wasn't going to happen this time. I was all in.
The only problem was, Liam didn't know that.
He pulled back with a huff of air. I whined, following him. He held me at arms length and shook his head.
"I was serious when I said we needed to talk." His lips were shiny and wet, his eyes dark with lust. And yet, he had stopped.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Doesn't this seem a little familiar?" he asked.
My heart, that little part of me that wanted to open myself up and let Liam in, wriggled with glee. Liam felt the same way I did. It felt like we'd done this so many times before. Like we'd kissed a dozen, a thousand times. Like we were meant to be—
"The last time this happened," he said, "you compared our relationship to a black hole."
The words weren't accusing, or upset. He said them matter-of-factly.
Now it was my turn to pull away. I left the circle of his arms completely.
"Why does that matter?" I asked.
"I don't want this to just be a moment of lust," he said. "I don't want you regretting this."
"I won't—" I said, before quieting.
How could I explain to Liam my change of heart? That I was worried being with him would make me weak? It had done anything but that. It had made me strong. How could I explain to him that I wasn't scared anymore?
"I told you before," he said to break the silence. "You're a star. You're a supernova. You're going to do amazing things, and I want to be by your side when that happens." Liam shook his head. "But we're not going to do something you'll regret."
"Do you know," I began, slowing making my way back to him, "what happens when stars collide?"
"No… What?" he asked carefully, as if he were defusing a bomb.
"When two stars collide, the force of it is powerful enough to forge gold and platinum." I bought my lips to his, just barely brushing them with mine. His pupils dilated, going dark and heated. "The force of it is so powerful it warps time and space."
Heat flashed in those green eyes.
"When two stars collide," I whispered into his mouth, "they burn with the fire of a billion suns."
His jaw tensed. His nostrils flared. With a deep growl, his lips came crashing down on mine.
The kiss was hungry. It was greedy. It was possessive.
It scorched me from the inside out.
I moaned into Liam's mouth and grasped at his firm, inked arms for balance. He pulled me closer with one hand and buried the other in my hair. He tugged on the strands almost roughly, tilting my head back. With this better angle, he thoroughly devoured my mouth, leaving me panting and gasping for air.
He nipped at my lips with his teeth before soothing the sting with his tongue. I whimpered and sighed at both the hint of pain and the rush of pleasure that followed. A pulsing heat settled between my thighs. It was similar to what I'd felt on stage, leaving a sweetly throbbing ache.
I felt Liam hardening in his jeans and I knew he was feeling it, too. I ground my hips against his, seeking friction, trying to relieve that ache. He let out a grunt.
