Page 148 of Modern Romance Collection February 2025, 5-8

‘There is no “it”.’

‘Weare fighting it. Ask yourself why? It’s not as if we don’t already know things will never go back to the way they were.’

He acknowledged it out loud and she agreed with a wistful shake of her head, part of her acknowledging his candour, part of her resenting it.

‘I wish...’

She stopped mid-sentence as his hands slid up her arms, ruffling the light silk covering and coming to rest on her shoulders. The action drew her eyes to his face.

‘Do you want your first time to be with me?’

She swallowed, thinking,I want my first and last time to be with you.

That wasn’t going to happen.

Get real, Clemmie. Just take what you can get. Make memories for when you are a sad old lady with cats.

No cats. She was allergic.

Her internal dialogue was a poor distraction from the driving need inside her. She could never resist Joaquin for the simple reason she didn’t want to.

She wasn’t sure if the truth equated with freedom, but it was a relief to acknowledge the facts.

‘You’re shaking,’ he discovered, drawing her closer until her head rested on his chest. ‘Sorry. I’m rushing this. Recovering your memory must be pretty mind-blowing—’

‘No,’ she said, burrowing in close, breathing in the scent of him, her breath coming in frantic little gasps. ‘You’re not rushing things... I don’t want to wait and you’re right—I want this.’

She lifted her face from the hardness of his chest and tilted her face up to his. Her green eyes glowed half in plea, half in invitation, and he couldn’t resist.

His lowered his mouth to hers, his tongue skimming its lush outline before claiming her lips. It was not a full-on assault. She sensed he was still holding back. It felt more like a question.

A question that she responded to by sliding her tongue between his lips and kissing him.

‘Yes, Joaquin, I do want this.’

The level of tension quivering in his body did not lessen, but it altered as he took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, becoming more focused.

He made her feel as though she was the only person in his world.

He was so beautiful!

She squeezed her eyes tightly closed, suddenly unable to stand the sensory and emotional overload.

‘This is really happening?’

‘Only if you want it to.’

Her eyes flew wide. ‘I do, Joaquin, I really do.’

Nothing had ever felt so right.

And then, without warning, like a cold gust of wind, she was suddenly attacked by a fluttering flock of insecurities.

‘I don’t know if...’

He brushed her lips with his again, kissing away her insecurities with a skill and a ruthless efficiency that left her breathless and aching for more.

‘This is not about technique...this is aboutfeeling.’

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