Miraculously, the only spot in her dorm devoid of clutter was her window box. The sill by her bed rested entirely vacant, save for the star flower, its stem rising determined from the lip of the recycled greenhouse pot.
He chuckled under his breath. It was only too easy to picture her shoving everything else off to make space.
A few seconds later, Kat sank down into his lap, bare legs dangling over the side of the chair. Lee forgot all about the plant as she balanced in his arms, his hand cupping her long legs as she dragged thatzappinghairbrush through her hair.
He flinched as a water droplet flicked against his ear, angling his head downward. But before he could get the droplet, Kat curled in his lap, reaching for him. His entire body seemed to still and pause its circulation as she caressed the tender skin,every nerve ending drawn to the touch of her fingertip along the rounded shell of his ear.
He barely breathed as she drew back, just far enough for her pale-grey eyes to bob into view, like two luminescent orbs of light, searching for him in a vast sea of darkness.
Everything around him felt like darkness these days, painted in shades of fear and uncertainty.
Everything except for her.
Her breath caressed his nose and he let his eyes flutter closed. Let his cerebral sight take over as she pressed her lips softly to one of his eyelids, then to the other. This time it was his heartbeat fluttering. But still he left his eyes closed. He left them soaking in the imprint of that touch as her hands wove around his neck and up his jawline.
And only when she had stilled, did he open them. Lee could feel his lungs swelling. Goddess indeed. The golden lighting overhead haloed her wet hair, making the shining strands glisten. And her usual playful smirk was softer, tonight. Holier. A million and two things he should be working on and figuring out, and all he could think of was her.
He adjusted the grip of his arms around her hips as she re-situated herself to straddle his lap, his hold anything but casual. He was the defender. He was the subservient. And only at her word would he ever let her go.
“You’re so serious tonight,” she breathed, some of the teasing lightness returning as she trailed her fingers over the planes of his chest and shoulders. Lee had to resist the urge to shudder again.
“Always, when it comes to you,” Lee ground out as Kat’s fingers lifted to trail across the freckles around his nose. But when she dropped her hand back down to the neckline of his T-shirt, his heart started racing again and he hitched her a little higher on his lap. “Try this with me.”
Weaving his fingers through her damp hair, he pulled her in closer, framing her lips with his. Still supporting her with one arm, he hoisted them up. Kat squealed as she wrapped both legs around his waist, her hairbrush tumbling to the ground with a clatter as he backed them against her bed.
He slipped a hand under her hoodie to palm the soft skin of her back as he lay her down against the faded duvet. His eyes traced the sliver of skin where her hemline met the waistband of her shorts, the promise of his lips soon to follow. Yet another mystery to unravel.
She was the brightness to ward off the dark. And he’d follow her light wherever she led them at the end of all of this.
But tonight, she was just his.
“Lee Waters,” Kat half-groaned as she reached for him, pulling him down to her. Lee huffed a shaky laugh against her lips. He planned to hear his name on her lips many more times down the path of their future. He positioned himself around her, letting her guide them into that deeper kiss, imagining exactly what sorts of stars they would emulate together.
CHAPTER 21: KAT
THEY WERE having fun taking their time. Even if all she could think about was Lee, and the feel of his body up against hers. The touch, the brush, the heat… It was her last thought as she drifted off into restless dreams, and her first yearning as she awoke alone and squirming beneath the sheets.
She felt like she was on some love-sick hangover. But it wasn’t her fault his lips moved so flawlessly against hers. Or that his body—
Void,it was like he’d been sculpting his body all these years just for her.
She sat up in bed, throwing the covers off of her, letting the chill climb her skin. There was no way she was going out on a raid like this. Not with only one thing on her brain.
Slapping a hand to the plate by her door, Kat skittered out her door and around the dorms.
Shower. Another shower would help.
She rounded the corner. She could get the steam going, clear her head, and that way she wouldn’t sit here thinking about—
“Lee?”
“Uh, morning,” he said, face flushed, his skin all sweaty.
“Were you thinking of me?” she teased sweetly, twirling her ponytail around her fingers. But rather than eliciting the embarrassed tiptoeing she expected, Lee took the step closer,pulling her in tight against him, where she learned just exactly how much he’d been thinking of her.
Delight prickled down her spine. Lower.
“Enjoy your shower,” Lee whispered in her ear, his voice a sensual promise of just how he would handle missing her.
