Alec blinked, suddenly looking much younger with a boyish grin.
Circe’s heart raced and Alec lowered his head, dipping down, taking it.
His mouth crashed into hers before the rest of his body did. And after all this time, he was kissing her, and kissing her, and kissing her, opening his mouth, feeling her tongue slide across his. It made his head spin and his chest ache.
She lifted onto her toes, grasping at the back of his head, pulling him closer, crushing his body to hers. The cloth wrapping around her body slipped off her and Alec’s warm hand dragged up her spine, the other sliding down her soft skin at her side.
He was losing control, his erection pressing into her.
Her heart was already hungry, but at that moment, it was starved, threatening to gnaw on itself if she didn’t let him in.
Alec had to pry himself away from her, but he did with a moan. “Come back with me to Bone Island,” he said, his hand sliding up and down her back, still unable to peel away from her body. “I don’t want a mere moment. I want more.”
Circe shook her head and kissed him once more.
A kiss that left him unraveled as she slipped out of his arms.
Alec turned, watching her take off toward the ocean.
“Circe!”
Then he chased after her.
It seemed, as the story goes, he was always chasing after her.
Circe ran into the water with grace, yet Alec’s steps seemed the opposite.
“What are you doing to me?” he asked, reeling and afraid.
The waves were challenging, forcing him away from her.
She turned to face him with a daring smile and raised her arms to each side. “Prove to me,” she said above the sound of the sea just as another wave slammed into her from behind. “Prove to me there is more, Alec. That once we delve deeper, it will still feel like this.”
She closed her eyes, and Alec held his breath when she fell backward into the water. The same wave crashed into him, and saltwater burned his eyes. He pinched them tightly with two fingers then opened them again. But she had gone.
Alec dove into the sea, propelling himself forward against the tide. He
wavedhis arms in all directions to find her. As time passed, the panic inside him stretched until it filled him. His head broke above the water, and he scanned the surface for a sign of Circe. He had no such luck.
Refusing to give up, he drew in as much air as his lungs would carry, dove back under, and added more distance between him and the shore.
But despite all efforts, she had disappeared.
CHAPTER 18
ADORA
Stone didn’t answerwhen I knocked on the lighthouse door.
And suddenly, I felt stupid standing here, freezing on the doorstep, fighting forceful winds, ready to confront him about a dream I’d had.
Gray clouds crawled overhead, and the winds threatened to tear off my jacket. At any moment, snow would come down and blanket the island in frosty white.
Without another second to waste, I tried the door’s handle.
It was unlocked.
Inside, the room was dark, cold, and void of life.
