“Pringles, what are you—” he said, tussling with her to get the phone back when suddenly she lost her balance and fell forward, landing with her mouth pressed against his. The struggling stopped.
In fact, the entire universe stopped.
Their eyes both went wide, and she quickly pulled away, covering her mouth with her hands. Miri couldn’t tell who was more shocked.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—” she mumbled through her fingers, but he stopped her, taking her hands and lowering them from her lips.
“Miri?” he whispered.
“Yes?”
“Kiss me.”
Miri released the tension in her legs and settled into his lap, straddling his waist. Rafa stared up at her with his beautiful deep brown eyes, waiting for her kiss. Wantingherlips. With one hand holding hers, his other raised to the back of her neck, then gently pulled her closer. She closed her eyes in anticipation, and when they finally connected, she melted into his arms as their mouths melted into each other.
For someone with hands as firm as Rafa’s, his lips were impossibly soft. Like tender pillows Miri wanted to nestle into. He took his time exploring her mouth, planting slow, delicate kisses against her lips before opening his mouth, gliding his tongue against hers, and seeking an invitation to be let in. An invitation Miri readily accepted.
He tasted of Pringles. Maybe she’d have to start callinghimthat as well. But his tongue twirled around hers as if he enjoyed the taste of her as much as she enjoyed him.
She needed more. Wanted more. She pulled their bodies closer, grazing the apex of her thighs over his pelvis as a low moan escaped from his throat, rumbling into her mouth. A jolt of arousing electricity from the friction and his satisfied groans raced through her body and sent a pleasant shiver across her skin.
“Are you cold?” he asked with his mouth still pressed to hers.
“Uh-uh,” she said, smiling against his lips. “The opposite.”
Even with her eyes still closed, she could sense his smile before he dragged her bottom lip between his teeth, then returned to kissing her. A kiss that sent a fire burning straight between her legs. His length hardened beneath her as she rocked her core against him. Desperate to have all of him. He caressed her mouth, showing no signs of stopping, when the screeching howls from a monkey in the tree branch above them broke their kiss apart.
“I think someone’s jealous,” Rafa said, smiling at her and tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.
“What makes you so sure?” Miri said.
“Because I’d be jealous if someone else was kissing you, too.”
Miri’s cheeks grew warm, and she tried hiding her bashful grin. But it was no use. Not with Rafa holding her in his arms—and with her body straddling his.
“Miri,” he said with concern in his voice, tearing her focus away from their kiss. She was afraid to look at him. Afraid to acknowledge the worry that was most certainly evident on his face. “Miri,” he repeated. “You know it’s not safe to be out here. Those guys? They’re going to come looking for us. We stole their boat.”
“Then we’ll ditch it.”
“They know where we’re heading. They’ll find us.”
“Right, and once we’re at Florestacasa, we’ll have a dozen other people to stop them. This sort of thing happens all the time,” Miri said, waving her hand like it was no big deal. “Looters looking for an easy payday, spying on expeditions so they can raid them as soon as they have a chance.”
“Allthe time?” he asked, raising his brow.
“Okay, maybe notallthe time. But sometimes.”
“That doesn’t meanthistime needs to be one of them. Have you ever been on an expedition being tracked by thieves?”
Miri twisted her mouth. “No, but Corrie has.”
“Corrie’s not here.”
Thanks for the reminder.
But Corrie would never back down from a fight. And certainly not when Vautour was on the other side of it.
“Look, I know you think this is a bad idea, but Vautour will desecrate the city. Don’t you think their descendants deserve to know what became of them?”
