He heard a low chuckle against his chest, and she tilted her head up towards his, a sensual smile on her lips.
“Only in the sense that I want more of it,” she cheekily replied, and then her expression grew solemn. “But I mean, this is unusual for me. As a general rule, I don’t go off into the woods and kiss someone that I was convinced hated me only a few hours earlier.”
He lifted her hand to his mouth again, this time running his lips gently on the delicate skin that curved under her wrist.
“I never hated you,” he murmured, delighting in the feel of her shivers. “I feared what you would do to my senses, the confusion you cause in me. It was a fear that governed my actions, from the moment that I first laid eyes on you, through the window on the Fairegrounds.”
“You did notice,” she breathed.
“Indeed, how could I not,” he said. “You have ever been in my thoughts since that moment.”
“I—” She swallowed, and he wondered if she was dismayed at his admission. “I noticed you too.”
His heart was filled with joy.
“But—”
His heart fell.Butwas one of the words he learned that was rarely followed by glad tidings.
“But I just got out of a relationship.” Her eyes fell, and she began biting that lower lip nervously.
“I see,” he said. “Just got out of a relationship” was one of those modern phrases that left a bad taste in his mouth. On the ‘reality tv’ shows that Aylwyn watched, those words usually led to tears, or ale. Copious amounts of ale. He stiffened, prepared for the worst. “You do not wish this.”
“Oh, no.”
She looked up at him and hope sprang anew in his chest. “I meant we’re going to need to take it slow, whatever this is.”
“I will take this however you wish.” He grinned so widely, his heart filled to bursting. And then he kissed her again, moving his mouth upon hers in a gentle caress that swept through his body, his tongue dancing lightly with hers as she melted against him. The scent and taste of the sweetest nectar enveloped his senses, as he felt her muscles slacken in his embrace. He took his time exploring her lips with his own, her shivers inviting a deeper connection.
Slowly.
As she wished.
