She didn’t allow his apology any further. She’d already been moving when he started to turn, so it took her less than a stride to have her body against his before she leaned up to kiss him.
A real one this time.
His lips were pure warmth, soft and pliant like the petalsof the flowers he bred in the greenhouse. Aofe’s body curved against his for purchase and she pressed up onto her toes to get closer while still clinging to her crutches.
There was a thud when Kizros knocked into the door, a momentary inhalation of surprise as he pulled back in shock, and then she didn’t need stabilization any longer. His arms wrapped underneath her ribs, holding her to him, and he tilted his head and molded his mouth to hers again.
This. This is what a kiss should be.
Lips. Curving against hers with just enough demanding pressure. Feeling and sensing and learning someone new. Smiling when he lifted her until her feet no longer touched the ground and she squeaked out a surprised but happy laugh.
Tongue. A soft dip at first, teasing her lower lip and asking for permission. And then more, as Aofe opened to let him sweep in. Kizros moaned, and the heat of him against her tongue had her matching the noise. And then there were…
Hands. They flexed against her sides before he was sliding one up her spine, to her neck, and then diving into her hair to hold her tighter. Just a light scraping of his nails as he tightened his grip and Aofe’s whole body was set aflame.
Her fingers uncurled from where they’d gripped his shoulders for balance, sliding up and around his neck as he bent to set her back on the ground.
“Fuck,” Kizros muttered against her mouth, his heaving breaths moving their bodies in sync. Heblinked behind glasses that had shifted askew, a shocked smile tilting his lips. “Aofe, that… you…”
Still supported by his grip, Aofe unwound an arm from his neck and smoothed out the lines marring his forehead before adjusting his glasses. “Did I do it right?”
Kizros blinked, then snorted out a laugh before pressing his forehead against hers. “Yeah, Aofe. More than right. That was… after…”
He trailed off, head turning away fast enough Aofe had to scramble. “No more guilt, Kiz.” She placed her hands on his cheeks, tilting him back to look at her. “They don’t get any more of you tonight. Not your voice, not your thoughts, okay?”
Kizros opened his mouth.
“And,” she cut in, “you will not apologize for them or about them. Not after what they did to you.”
His face squished in disgust. “To me? What they orchestrated. What they said about you?—”
“Is not the worst thing anyone has ever done to me,” Aofe said before immediately snapping her mouth shut.
Kizros’s eyes narrowed. “Aofe…”
She ran her tongue along the inside of her cheek, shaking her head. “Look, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that my routine walk home in broad daylight suddenly became unsafe. My aunt and uncle weren’t exactly the best people, okay?”
His teeth flashed in the starlight, but she urged his gaze back to hers.
“It’s over, Kiz. It’s done. They had their motivations, and as awful as it was, I’m here now. That doesn’t make what they did okay, but it doesn’t serve me to give them any more of myself than they already took. My best revenge isn’t going to be violence or yelling or letting their actions weigh me down. My best revenge is to live, to find what makes me happy… to kiss the demon I want to kiss.”
Kizros swallowed, the shadows furrowing his brow softening. “So I’m just a revenge kiss?”
Aofe huffed a laugh, fingers teasing the base of his horns. “No, Kiz. You’re notjustanything. But promise you won’t ever let anyone make you feel as if you shouldn’t be heard. And that you’ll kiss me like that again.”
Somehow, his eyes seemed to darken further, a tongue running over one of his fangs as he smirked. “I promise that kiss was just the beginning of what I want to do with you.”
A shudder rolled through her body at the growl in his voice, and Aofe pulled her lip between her teeth. “Then what exactly are we still doing downsta—Kizros!”
Aofe was already hoisted into his arms, not quite over his shoulder but close enough. He only needed a single arm to hold her weight, grip banded just under her rear to carry her toward the stairs. His tail bobbed behind, carrying her crutches with no effort.
“Sorry,” he called around her body as he took the first steps. “Was there more to that sentence?”
She let out a happy sigh, leaning herself on his shoulder. “No, this urgency isthe gist of it.”
“Because I’ll happily take you to the greenhouse. Plenty of surfaces we can work with.”
Aofe straightened, twisting around his head to get a better look at his face. “Kizros, you’re a little freaky, aren’t you?”
