She shook her head. “No. For teaching me to dance and letting me have the school dance experience.”
“Oh, you really didn’t miss much. It was in the high school gym that smelled like dirty sweat socks. The boys smelled like dirty sweat socks and too much cologne. Most of the girls lined one wall while the boys lined the opposite, all too afraid to ask the other to dance for fear of rejection or embarrassing moves.”
“Then I’m glad I got to experience it now. With you.” She leaned up on her toes, brushed the crumbs from his mouth and then pressed her lips to his in a brief kiss.
The combination of dancing, holding her close and then her mouth touching his sent Rogue over the edge. His arms came up around her and crushed her body against his as he claimed her mouth.
For the first few seconds, she stiffened.
Rogue immediately loosened his hold. If she wanted to get away, he wouldn’t hold her back. It had to be her choice. He fully expected her to exercise it and step back.
Instead, she melted into him, her hands sliding up his chest to clasp behind his neck, bringing him closer. Her lips parted, and her tongue slipped out to tangle with his.
Fire surged through his body, adrenaline pushing blood through his veins so fast it made his head spin. His desire threatening logic, Rogue lifted his head. “I can’t.”
She stiffened in his arms. “I shouldn’t have kissed you.” Keira stepped backward. “You didn’t ask for it. I understand why you can’t continue.”
Rogue drew in a deep breath, reached for her arms and gripped them. “When I said I can’t, I meant I can’t control what’s building inside.”
She frowned up at him. “I’m confused.”
“If I don’t stop now, I won’t be able to stop, or at least, it will be twice as hard to stop.” He pressed his forehead to hers. “What I’m doing a terrible job of saying is that I find you so very attractive, and I don’t want to scare you, or make you feel uncomfortable with attentions you might not want.” He let go of his breath.
“You find me attractive?” she whispered. “Knowing what you know about me?”
“Especially knowing what I know about you,” he stared down into her eyes. “You’ve been through a lot and have come out stronger than any woman I’ve ever known.” He brushed his thumb along her cheek. “But knowing what you’ve been through, I can’t let my desire override everything. You need time to heal. To be okay with a man wanting you, touching you.”
She cupped his cheek in her hand. “I’m okay with you wanting me…touching me.”
“Okay isn’t enough,” He turned his face and pressed a kiss into her palm. “You have to want the man as much, if not more, than he wants you.”
“What if I do want the man as much as he wants me?” she whispered.
Rogue froze. “God, Keira. You’re killing me. I’d never forgive myself if I took advantage of you.”
“What if I take advantage of you?” she said and leaned up to press her lips against his. “What if I initiate? If I control the pace?”
He stepped back and scrubbed a hand down his face. “It’s too soon. We’ve known each other for less than a week.”
Her face tightened, pink flooding her cheeks. She nodded. “It’s okay. I won’t force myself on you. I just thought...”
By the look on her face, she wasn’t getting it all wrong, and Rogue was making it worse every time he opened his mouth. He closed his eyes to the pain in her expression. “You don’t understand.”
“I think I do. Good night, Rogue.” She turned to leave.
Rogue snagged her hand and tugged gently, pulling her into his arms. “Keira, I want you more than you can imagine.” He held her close, stroking her long, dark hair while inhaling the essence of her and wanting her in every way. “I don’t want you to regret anything that might happen between us.”
“I won’t regret what isn’t going to happen,” she said, her body held stiff, her tone tight.
He tipped her chin up and stared into her eyes. “You’ve been held more or less captive for years, with men abusing you, if not physically then mentally. I don’t ever want you to think I would abuse you in either way, nor take advantage of you when men have subjugated you for so long.”
She rested her hands on his chest. “And I don’t want you to think that just because I’ve been with Onyx and have been in some...difficult...situations, that I have to be treated with kid gloves. I’m a woman, now. Not a girl. Not a teen. I’ve learned and am still learning how to make my own decisions and have my own opinions and desires. Give me credit for knowing what I want and going after it. However, that being said, I won’t bother you if you’re not interested in me.” She spun away, her chin held high.
Rogue groaned. “Keira, I want you,” he said softly. “I just want to take it slow to make sure you aren’t hurt more than you’ve already been.” He turned her, pulled her into his embrace again and rested his chin on top of her hair.
“On more than one occasion, I didn’t think I’d survive.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Sometimes, I didn’t want to survive.”
His arms tightened around her. He could only imagine the horrors she’d endured. No woman or child should have had to go through what she had. Losing her parents had been hard. Enduring a bad foster home and then losing her sister to drug dealers and human traffickers would break most people. “How did you make it through?” he asked.
