Kaia switched on the bedside lamp and bent to pick up my note from the floor. “So, you got my gift.”
“I did. Thank you.”
“It’s nothing.” She traced the two words I’d written.
Nothing? No one cared about me the way she did. “It’s everything,” I whispered.
The air shifted—intimate, dangerous. Our gazes tangled until she folded the paper and set it on her desk. “Did you celebrate?”
“Lunch with my mother, then a stop at my teammate’s house. Both disasters.”
“Why?” She stepped closer, her body moving beneath the thin fabric of her nightdress. One more step and I could touch her. Smell her. Feel her.
I couldn’t look away. Heat spread through me, and I swallowed hard. “He was just being an ass. I think he feels threatened.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “Can’t say I’m surprised. You’re pretty great.”
Damn it. She couldn’t just say that—with that smile. The longer I stared, the more I wanted to—
Fuck it.
I pulled her to me. Her soft chest collided with mine, and a surprised gasp slipped from her pink lips. My hand cupped her cheek, thumb tracing the line of her jaw. When she tipped her face up, I couldn’t wait any longer.
Seconds before my lips touched hers, I already knew I was headed for a crash. An ugly one—the kind that left you broken on the tarmac, wondering how you’d been in control one moment and lost it the next.
One kiss could set me free or destroy me. I hadto know.
My mouth brushed hers, gentle, tasting. The hand cradling her cheek slid around her neck, holding her close, while her fingers climbed my back. When she grazed the nape of my neck, goosebumps shot across my skin. I deepened the kiss, teasing the tip of her tongue with mine.
Kaia tugged my hair, and I angled my mouth over hers, devouring her as my other hand pressed into the small of her back, pulling her flush against me.
I couldn’t get enough. Her pulse fluttered beneath my thumb. I left her lips to trail down her neck, licking, biting softly until she whispered my name and clutched my shoulders.
Fuck. I was her first kiss. Selfishly, I wanted to be her only kiss.
I traced a path back up her throat and claimed her mouth again. This time she held my face, her tongue sliding against mine, dizzying me with want.
I wrapped her tight in my arms as we kissed. She fit against me perfectly, just like I’d known she would—and I hated the thought of letting her go.
Kaia’s palms moved across my back. I slid a hand over her hair—watermelon-scented, silk between my fingers.
“Mi niña,” I whispered against her mouth.
I leaned my forehead to hers, breathing slow, trying to steady myself. Our eyes held.
I wanted more. More kisses, more of her. That kiss felt like giving away a piece of myself, and I wanted her to keep it. Keep me.
A timid smile curved Kaia’s lips. She brushed my hair back, then pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. “Happy birthday, Ash.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Kaia
Asher and I had broken apart less than a minute ago, and I already missed the gentle press of his lips. Kissing him felt like a dream—only I knew too well I’d have to wake.
“Kaia,” he whispered, his thumb gliding up and down my neck.
Shudders ran through me at his touch, but the remorse in his voice sobered me. “Do you regret it?”
