Every ounce of blood left his brain and fled south to his nearly painful erection. He ground his hips into her, craving the friction of her body against his and cursing whoever invented denim for making it so damn thick.
Her tongue tangled with his, and he could feel the stiff peaks of her nipples through the cotton of his t-shirt.
More, he thought, his head growing dizzy from the scent of her. He needed more of her body that he could touch and taste. Needed more of her skin against his own. Needed more of her soft whimpers as she sank into his arms.
Gripping her shoulders, he spun around to press Cora into the wall, his hand snaking up behind her so she didn’t crack her head.
“Cora.” Her name slipped from his lips on a moan, and his free hand slid under her shirt, seeking out those taught little buds. She arched her back against him, and he took the movement as an invitation to dip his hand beneath her bra, cupping the ample breast that perfectly filled his palm.
So soft and warm, he thought as his fingers circled her nipple, and his tongue demanded to take their place.
He began peppering kisses down the side of her neck as he rolled his hips rhythmically against hers, a mere tasteof how good they would feel together if the clothing disappeared. He picked up the pace when she clutched him tighter, desperate to hear all the naughty little noises he could tease from her.
His other hand slid down to the waistband of her leggings, hovering right at the edge to see if she would deny him or grant entrance. When her hands tightened in his hair, and a tiny shiver ran down her spine, he let his fingers dip inside her pants to slowly begin the trek toward the bliss that awaited.
He was less than an inch away from the tiny bundle of nerves that would allow him to bring the most intense pleasure to his mate, when she seized up in his arms and cried out in pain.
That small, agonized noise hit him like a fire extinguisher, dousing his arousal and bringing his erotic pursuit to an abrupt end.
Moving at vamp speed, he leapt away from her, concern flooding him that he might have done something wrong. Harmed her in some way. He didn’t taste any blood to indicate he nicked her with his fangs, but something had clearly flipped her switch from ecstasy to agony.
His eyes swept over her body as he took in her rigid posture, the slight twitching of her arms and legs as if she’d been electrocuted. Had he caused that?
Damn it, he cursed internally. He knew he shouldn’t have kissed her. He hadn’t meant to take that leap just yet when she was still so uneasy around him, but he hadn’t been able to control himself. She was just so damned cute when she got all puffed up and fierce. And her insults were so adorably innocent, he couldn’t stop himself.
Now he was paying the price for his lack of restraint. He couldn’t bear the look of pain on her face as she leaned against the wall, twitching.
He took a tentative step forward. “Cora, what’s happening? Did I hurt you? I know I shouldn’t have kissed you without asking, but Ijust—”
“Shut. Up.” Cora gritted out, and the words came out slightly slurred as if her tongue wasn’t working properly.
Lilith help him, had he caused some kind of allergic reaction? Or maybe he was wrong and one of his fangs did slice into her. If she thought he’d been about to feed, then that might explain her unexpected shut down.
He watched her carefully for any signs of what was happening, and a few seconds later her body went slack and slumped to the floor. He caught her before she hit the hideous yellow carpet and eased her carefully to a seated position. Backing away, he perched on the bed and kept a watchful eye on her, waiting for any indication of what she needed or how he could help. He couldn’t believe how badly he’d fucked the whole situation up. He kissed her one time, and she had a seizure.
Maybe he really wasn’t good for anything other than causing pain.
“You can stop looking at me like I’m a leper,” Cora said quietly after what felt like an hour of awkward silence.
“I’m not,” he protested, wondering how she could have possibly come to that conclusion.
Cora stood up cautiously as if she didn’t trust her own legs then walked over to her bag. She pulled out a change of clothes and headed toward the bathroom.
“Wait,” he called out before she could shut the door. Was she just going to get dressed and act like nothing had happened?
He jumped to his feet and strode over to where she hovered just inside the bathroom, her small hand turning white as she clutched the door frame tightly. Bracing his hand on the door so she couldn’t shut it in his face, he demanded, “Talk to me, Cora. What was that?”
“A mistake,” she mumbled, refusing to look him in the eyes.
A flash of anger surged through him. “Like hell it was,” he growled, capturing her chin and forcing her to look at him. “As far as I could tell, it was anything but a mistake right up until you started shaking.”
He paused and squeezed his eyes shut for a second, forcing his breathing to slow and his frustration to dissipate. He might not know what just happened, but he did know anger was the wrong emotion for right now. Whatever she was dealing with, she didn't need his temper on top of it.
So much for playing it cool.
“Tell me,” he asked, more subdued than before. “What did I do wrong?”
Her eyes shuttered, and all the rigidity left her body. Resting her forehead against the half open door, she whispered, “Nothing.” Then added, “And everything.”
