"Hi," I say clumsily as I stand there, suddenly frozen, holding the towel with both hands as if it would slip off my body at any moment otherwise. The feeling of shame that suddenly flows through me because this is a new and foreign situation for me hits me unexpectedly.
Cole’s gaze, which slides over my face to my shoulders and down my body, before meeting mine again, literally burns me. It feels as if flames are brushing over my naked skin. The sensation of being exposed is mixed with a new emotion that I can’t identify. Heat rushes through me while a shudder wants to steal my mind.
In an attempt to distract myself, I say the first thing that comes to mind. "I didn’t have clean clothes."
Cole nods, continuing to look at me. Again, there’s that fire I saw in his eyes before he kissed me. My throat tightens, my stomach clenches, and my hands get sweaty, but I wouldn’t want to return to the bathroom or go to my room for anything in the world. Because something about the reactions my body is having to Cole’s gaze feels way too good, and it’s amplified by his next words.
"I can see that. But maybe you should get some."
His voice sounds rough and almost pleading, but I just can’t move. Instead, I just stand there and stare at him until he pushes himself off the kitchen counter he’s been leaning on. With slow steps, he comes toward me, moving like a predator about to attack at any moment. Powerful, precise, and absolutely sure of himself. But all I can think about is his piercing gaze on me.
When he stops right in front of me, I look up at him breathlessly. "Are you going to kiss me again now?"
His eyes darken as he studies my face and gives the slightest shake of his head. "I’m trying really hard not to."
A frown pulls at my brow, even as his voice sends a rush of heat through my body and causes the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end. "Why?"
"Because once I start, I might not want to stop."
I don’t know where I get the courage to say all these things. Perhaps it is not even courage at all, but stupidity. But I can’t stop the words, and I don’t care if they make me seem inexperienced or naive. "Maybe I wouldn’t want you to stop."
Cole makes a tortured sound. "Darling… You should be very careful saying things like that. Too many men out there would see it as an open invitation, whether you truly mean it or not."
"I don’t know what that means," I mutter.
Lost in thought, he brushes a strand of my wet hair over my shoulder, his gaze following his hand. I shudder, although he doesn’t even touch me, and at the same time wish he would.
"Are you sure?" he asks, lifting his gaze to look me in the eye again.
I just nod because my mouth is useless all of a sudden. I don’t even know how I’m still standing since I can’t feel my legs anymore.
Cole moves even closer. The heat of his body warms my bare skin as my eyes flicker between his storm-gray ones. He cups my cheeks with both hands and gently strokes my lower lip with the thumb of his right hand, and my eyes fall shut.
"May I kiss you, Sophie?"
I manage to breathe a barely audibleyes, clutching to the towel as if it’s a lifeline.
Seconds later, he places his lips gently on mine. I feel the cut on his lower lip, but he doesn’t seem to care, so neither do I.Tentatively, he caresses my mouth with his, gently brushing his lips against mine again and again until I feel lightheaded.
This kiss is quite different from the one the day before. Careful, cautious, and nearly reserved. I almost wish he would kiss me like he did last night, but before I can even grasp the thought, Cole is already pulling away from me.
"Put some clothes on, little darling," he murmurs in a husky voice before walking around me and into the bathroom.
My lips are tingling, and even though it wasn’t an intense, passionate kiss, I’m out of breath.
Something tells me Cole has been holding back because yesterday, he kissed me as if his life depended on it. But to be honest, I don’t care. It doesn’t matter how he kisses me, as long as he does it. Because Cole’s kisses are the most indescribable thing I’ve ever experienced. I feel like I’m sitting on clouds because my body is so light. At the same time, there’s a heat in me that wants to spread and make me lose my head. It wants him to never stop kissing me. Wants him to put his hands on my hips and then let them roam everywhere. My entire body burns, longing to be touched by Cole, and I don’t know what to do with this feeling or how to make it go away. I don’t even think I could. I’m pretty sure only Cole has the power to satisfy this strange new need rising inside me.
Despite all the confusing emotions, I can’t stop my mouth from twisting into a smile that almost hurts.
When I read my books, I always tried to imagine someone kissing me. I wondered what it would be like and thought I could understand it from the descriptions in the stories.
I had no idea. Not even the faintest.
Words can’t even begin to describe what Cole’s kisses feel like, and I decide that there can’t be anything in this world better than the feeling of his lips on mine.
THIRTY-THREE
COLE
