“I knew a girl who had her tongue split by a piercer,” Bree said. “She had to relearn how to pronounce some things, but eventually sounded the same as before.”
“Oh, great. Because that wasss my biggest concern.” I sat there wiggling my tongue in my mouth, practicing words as we drove. After a while, I could hear cars around us and saw their headlights coming through the windshield. It was a big road, with lots of vehicles. I could barely hear myself think.
15
LOSING CONTROL
NEMO
“Three hours,” Baz mumbled, tapping the watch.
He and I sat on the mattress as the van sped down the road. There wasn’t an inch between us. Every time he pulled away, I leaned closer, making sure our shoulders were pressed together. That way, I could feel every move he made. He wasn’t getting away like he wanted.
The springs beneath us coiled as he adjusted, and I jerked my head around.
“Calm down,” Baz sighed. “Where am I going to go?” He waved around the back of the van. We were in a little metal cave barreling down concrete lanes with cars all around us.
Calm down? How? I knew he wanted to run. Even if it was improbable for him to get away, it put me on edge. On top of that, this highway road was loud. The wheels thumped, blurring out the sound of Baz’s heart rate. Which made it harder to anticipate his actions.
Baz slid gloved fingers between his lips, tracing the new shape of his tongue. I watched him play with it. He stuck his tongue out and practiced moving the twin tips independently. He wrapped each side around the other, twisting them together.Even when he noticed I was watching, I couldn’t drag my eyes away.
“Is it gross?” Baz asked, sticking it out further for my inspection. Reaching up, I touched both tips with my fingers.
“Can you spread it?” I asked.
“Hmm, maybe I could move each side around something.” He grabbed my wrist and, with utmost concentration, tried to slide the tips around the sides of my finger. The skin between his eyebrows pinched as he struggled, tongue out.
No, gross is not what I'd call it. But … I could think of a few more tasks to make sure it wasn’t gross for the sake of being thorough.
Baz flattened his tongue against my finger, trying a different tactic. As he licked up, the tongue split on its own, sliding up either side of my skin. His eyes flicked up to me, and I jerked my hand back suddenly.
“It’s not gross.” I felt pressure low in my gut. The dangerous kind. Was Baz alwaysthistempting? The springs of the mattress moved gently, Baz readjusting while I turned away and tried to get a hold of my body’s reaction. But I realized my mistake immediately. He dove towards the back door the moment my attention wasn’t on him. I turned and lunged, taking him down. I thoroughly covered his struggling body with mine.
“That was pointless,” I growled in his ear.
“Get off me,” he hissed. His leather gloves clawed at the metal floor, trying to pull himself out from under me and towards the doors.
“No,” I said, pressing my full weight on him to end his struggling. His attempt to thrash his way out from under me was only a squirm. My tongue slid over my lips as I felt him struggle. I couldn’t help but remember what he’d said before:you can fuck me.
“Are you purposely tempting me?” I asked. Last night my mates had been lined up on the bed. I remembered how he’d looked, naked next to Bree. Bare skin and asking if I was going to fuck him.
“No,” Baz laughed. “I’m trying to leave, not fuck.” I balled my fists as I felt his body move beneath mine. Yesterday, it was a lot easier telling him I wasn’t going to bend him over. Today, I had no idea where that strength came from. The logic of it was slipping away from me. Which was odd. Yesterday, I was so sure of its importance. Even in bed, when he looked at me with half-lidded eyes and dared me to try.
Leaning down, I inhaled the scent near his neck. It was stronger than before. I pulled it into my lungs, feeling them burn the same way they had in the fire at Verfallen. My head spun, and immediately I wanted another smell.
“What are you doing?” He asked in suspicion. I buried my nose into the nape of his neck and licked a thick line up. Baz stilled beneath me, his breath catching in surprise. My teeth ached with the need to bite him. The urge to finally claim him was overwhelming.
“Fuck,” I growled, peeling myself off him. My hand wrapped around his arm, pulling him onto the mattress beside me. Shoulder to shoulder again. “Just stay put,” I willed us both. What was going on? It felt like the time I’d had a chemically induced rut.
Baz rubbed the back of his neck, trying to remove the feel of my spit on him. But really, he was just rubbing it in. I closed my eyes and ground my teeth.
“What do you think seducing me will accomplish?” I asked him. There were no windows in the back of the van, and it was still dark outside. It made the space feel private. Made me strain to hear the small noises he made, even though the highway was stealing them from me. If I were closer, I could hear it all,though. I jerked away, realizing I’d been leaning in, causing him to shoot a confused look at me.
“Seducing you?” He asked.
Baz glanced at his watch, then, without warning, attempted a barrel roll towards the back. I didn’t need to cover his body with mine, but I did. I didn't need to drag him back to the mattress and hold him belly down, my hand gripping his neck, my hips digging into his ass. But I did that too.
“Stop,” I growled.
