It starts soft—careful, reverent, like he’s tasting the shape of the moment. His lips brush mine once, twice, and I shudder under the gentleness of it.
But the second I tilt my head and kiss him back like I mean it, everything changes.
His big hands come up to cradle my face, one splayed wide against my cheek, the other sliding into my hair like he can’t stand not to be touching me. The kiss deepens—hotter now, hungrier, his mouth slanting over mine like he’s been waiting for years.
Maybe he has.
I climb into his lap without thinking, straddling his thighs, fingers curling around the back of his neck. The heat between us ignites like a struck match—sudden, consuming. He groans lowin his throat, like he’s barely holding back, and the sound sends a pulse of heat through my entire body.
My sweater rides up over my thighs. His hands slip beneath the hem to grip my hips.
“Are you sure?” he murmurs, breathless.
I nod, nose brushing his. “I’ve never been more sure. Please…please take me to bed, Garrik.”
And just like that—he kisses me again, harder this time, and I know we’re not coming back from this.
We’re past the point of no return.
8
GARRIK
The kiss is still buzzing on my lips when I pull back, breathing hard.
I stare at her…just looking, memorizing. I’m terrified she’s going to tell me this was a mistake, but I’m certain she’s not drunk this time, and neither am I. No…this is real.
It’s happening.
“Iris,” I whisper, my hands gripping her hips as I try to stay gentle. “We don’t have to?—”
“I know,” she interrupts. “But I want to. Please.”
I kiss her again.
It starts slow…if a little hungry, but I’m still afraid of hurting her. Iris is demanding, though, tilting her head to pull me in closer, deeper.
My tongue slides into her mouth and she moans around it.
Gods…
Iris melts into me, letting out little gasps against my lips, fingers threading into my hair. My hands roam over her back, desperate to slide beneath her oversized sweater, wanting,wanting…
She pulls away.
“Inside,” she breathes. “Now.”
I do as she commands, lifting her effortlessly, carrying her toward the cottage. She tastes like the sweetest honey, her scent enveloping me, and I don’t want to stop kissing her even as I stumble slightly, the two of us laughing against each other’s lips as I fumble for the door.
“Let me,” she whispers.
She somehow finds the knob behind us, then I’m pushing inside, the dark interior swallowing us up in the scent of woodsmoke and sugar. Lavender hangs drying from the ceiling, mingling with Iris’s sweetness, and I’m nearly overcome as I groan against her.
I can’t make it all the way to the bed…I need her nakednow.
She gasps against my mouth as I lift her onto the big dining table in the middle of the cottage, the wood creaking beneath her. I brace one hand beside her hip, the other sliding gently up the back of her thigh. She’s all soft skin and shaky breaths, her legs parting instinctively as I step between them.
The kiss breaks, but I stay close—resting my forehead against hers.
