Hale’s fingers slid into her hair, tilting her head just so as his mouth closed over hers. She may have moaned, but she wasn’t sure. Then his tongue was teasing its way along her lips, Karissa opening up to let him in. She moaned louder this time. She couldn’t help it. He tasted so damn good.
Their tongues tangled together slowly, takingtheir time, even as Karissa wondered if she might burst into flames at any second. Without thought, she wrapped a hand around his strong neck, pulling him in closer, refusing to let him get away. Never wanting this kiss to end.
It struck her then how long it had been since she’d had a real kiss—the kind that made her heart beat faster and heat pool in her core. Ten years, if she was being honest with herself.
She’d dated a few guys over the past decade. She was a Paladin, not a nun—Karissa had checked, and they weren’t the same thing. But none of them had ever seemed to work out. In every case, there was something missing. In fact, most had been downright bland. Like kissing a tub of cold mashed potatoes—with congealed gravy on top.
Kissing Hale now reminded her exactly how much time she’d wasted.
When he finally pulled back, ending the kiss, Karissa had to fight the urge to chase after those absolutely perfect lips. It was almost scary how badly she wanted to climb onto his lap, especially after catching sight of the hungry yellow-gold tint of color now rimming his eyes.
“I think that settles any questions either of us might have had about where we want this thing between us to go,” she whispered softly, leaning forward to kiss him again.
“I guess so,” he said with a grin as she continuedto kiss him. “It seems like the only thing we need to figure out now is where we go from here.”
Karissa took a deep breath and then answered in the most honest words she could think of. “Perhaps your bedroom. Together?”
Hale’s eyes flared even brighter for a moment before dropping back down to a smolder. “I’m definitely open to the idea, but I want to make sure you’re certain. We don’t need to rush, you know.”
“Who’s rushing?” she said. “The way I see it, we’ve been waiting for this moment for ten years. Don’t you think that’s long enough?”
Hale gazed at her for a few seconds, then stood and held out his hand. “Ten years of waiting is more than long enough for me.”
Chapter 17
As she and Hale walked down the short hallway to the bedroom, it took a few moments for Karissa to realize that the tingling in her stomach was more than excitement.
She wasnervous.
At first she couldn’t understand why, since it wasn’t like she didn’t want this. She wanted to be with Hale more than anything. But then she realized that was the point. She’d been waiting so long for this moment—without even knowing it—that she was freaked out about messing it up.
“Karissa,” Hale said, coming up behind her once they stepped into the bedroom to wrap his strong arms around her middle and pull her back against his equally strong chest. “Breathe. You’re starting to spiral.”
She did as he suggested, leaning back into his body and tugging his arms around her tighter. It felt amazing. “How did you know?”
“Your heart,” he whispered against her ear. “I could hear it thumping like a drum, getting faster with every passing second. Will you tell me what has you so rattled? Like I said, we don’t have to do this if you’re not ready.”
“It’s not that. I promise.” She turned in his arms to reach up and place her hands lightly against his powerful chest. “It’s simply that after everything, I never allowed myself to imagine this happening. And now that it is, it’s a little…”
“Overwhelming?” Hale finished softly.
“Yes, but not in a bad way,” she said quickly, not wanting him to misunderstand. “I’m just really excited.”
He slid his hands down to her waist, tugging her closer and bending his head until his mouth was only inches from hers. “I can work with excited.”
The kiss was slow and gentle, like he was afraid of spooking her. That was never going to happen, of course, and as soon his fingers found their way into her hair again, the butterflies that had been barreling around in her stomach disappeared, replaced with a completely different tingling sensation, this one a bit farther south.
Getting a firm grip on Hale’s shirtfront, Karissa twisted him around before giving him a little nudge toward the bed. Truthfully, she didn’t push him all that hard, but Hale still toppled back onto the bed, taking her with him.
Karissa straddled Hale’s hips as he lay there flat on his back, her palms once against resting on his nicely muscled chest. “You have a very comfortable lap,” she murmured, leaning over so her long hair draped down over both of their faces. “Has anyone ever told you that?”
“Actually, no. I can’t recall anyone mentioning that particular detail.” He grinned up at her as his hands glided back and forth along her thighs, getting closer to her butt with every passing second. “But thanks for letting me know.”
Leaning down, she kissed him again, her tongue darting inside to tease and tangle with his. There was still a hint of the salty, cheesy, buttery goodness from the popcorn, but mostly he tasted like…him. It was impossible to describe in any words other than intoxicating.
They kissed for long minutes, neither of them in a rush to take things any faster. But as Karissa felt Hale’s hardening cock between her legs, she couldn’t help but grind a little, sending wonderful pulses of pleasure through her core. It had been so long since she’d been this aroused.
Actually, Karissa realized, she’d never been this turned on before. And to think she still had all her clothes on. Of course, that part started to change soon enough when Hale slid his fingers under her shirt and gently pushed it up. She lifted up a bit, helping him slide it over her head. Reaching back, she unhooked her bra, pulling it off her shoulders and tossing it aside.
