Don’t,I wanted to say, but my throat seemed to close up.Don’t let me. Don’t give me this.
“No,” I whispered back.
She did it anyway, those soft lips searching for mine in the dark, finding my chin first and then working their way up until our mouths were locked together. I tasted defiance in the way her lips parted, vanilla and mint on her tongue. She made a sound in the back of her throat, and I felt it vibrate against my chest. Every nerve ending in my body begged to respond, to give in, to take. A low groan found its way out of my throat as I leaned into the kiss, and her fingers wound into my hair, knocking the hood off of my head. I was burning alive in her touch.
The door behind her creaked as I pressed my thigh between hers, and her mouth claimed mine with a sudden urgency. She tilted her hips into me, kissing me with more hunger than I ever would have expected. God, I wanted this.Shewanted this. She wantedme.
She tugged her wrist away from me, and I let her go, allowing her fingertips to brush underneath my jacket, sliding across the sensitive strip of skin above my jeans. One of my hands gripped her hip tight enough to bruise, the other threaded instinctively through her hair. I was spiraling, clinging to what little shred of logical thought remained. I broke the kiss away, tracing my lips down her neck and gently sinking my teeth into her flesh. She gasped and arched into me, pressing her stomach into my achingerection. That response to my touch almost had me tearing the clothes off of her, but I had to reel myself back in.
My whole body screamed for more.
She trusts you. That thought came again like a gun pressed to my temple. I didn’t deserve her trust, not yet, but shetrusted me.
And that’s what broke me out of the haze. This was stupid; this was so stupid. She would let me absolutely ruin her. She would let me put her life in danger. That’s why I had to stop. I had done all of this to protect her, and I wasn’t done yet. She still was not safe.
I clenched my jaw and pulled away from her, breath ragged. I was going to have TMJ by the time I was done with this girl.
“No,” I breathed, hating myself, even though I knew it was best.
Her breath hitched. I felt her stillness first, then the slow retreat of her fingers from beneath my jacket like she’d realized she crossed a line.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
“It can’t happen again.” I cut her off too fast, too harshly. She flinched, and I wanted to kill myself. I stepped away from her, recoiling like her touch burned me (which, honestly, it kind of had). I felt the cold rush in as soon as I put space between us. I had to add that separation, because if I was given that chance I would take everything she offered me.
I pushed past her to crack the door just enough to check the hallway. No voices, no movement. I could hear my pulse pounding in my ears.
“We need to go,” I said. “Stay close.”
She hesitated and then spoke, her voice confused, hurt. “Hey…”
I didn’t look at her. I couldn’t afford to risk losing what little restraint I had left.
Chapter seventeen
Eden
“Exit Wound”
Thehallwaywasempty,but my chest was full of noise. Halo walked ahead of me with his head down, eyes scanning. He had me by the wrist, hand wrapped around the flesh just below my torn skin, and he dragged me along behind him. I felt so rejected and embarrassed. My lips still tingled from the way he kissed me back before pulling away so abruptly. I didn’t understand. He kissed me back, and I knew he wanted to. I felt it; every rigid inch of his body had screamed it.
So why did he look at me now like it was the worst experience of his life?
Outside, the air was cold and sharp. He walked us to a matte black motorcycle parked in the far corner of the lot, shielded between a van and the low cement wall. I shivered, partially from the chill and partially from the realization that it was the same bike from the cemetery. He really had been watching me for longer than I realized. How many times had he lined up a shot on me that he couldn’t take?
Without a word, he handed me his helmet.
“I… shouldn’t I go home?” I asked, eyeing the helmet and then him. “Are we going to Ginger & Black?”
“No,” he said shortly. “You’re coming with me. There are two men inside that are looking for you. We have to gonow.”
“To your place?”
“It’s safe. That’s all that matters right now.”
“But…”
“Helmet.” He held it out more firmly. “Now.”
