Page 88 of Can't Help Falling

CHAPTER NINETEEN

THESECOND, THEVERYSECOND, their lips touched, Tyler knew how well and truly fucked he was. It was like that horrible first millisecond after stepping off a high dive at a public pool. There was nowhere to go but down. And down he went. Fast.

He tumbled into her mouth, pressing smoothly against her plush lips until he caught, finally, the elusive flavor of her. He’d expected something earthy, sagey, herby. But no. Her flavor was surprisingly light, open, with hints of vapor and ozone. Tyler made a soundless groan, gripping her tighter, and slid his lips along hers.

His temperature was all off, the heat of the air that touched his skin as stifling as strips of steamed fabric laid over him. He gasped for breath and he breathed only color. Rivers of multicolored paint seemed to start at their feet and slow-motion tornado their way up. His eyelids pressed closed so hard that he saw his own heart, hidden in the lightless black cave of his chest, pumping colorful blood maniacally fast.

Her delicate hand, her grip surprisingly firm, traced up his back and they both jumped when static electricity shocked them where she touched him.

She made a noise into his mouth, just a soft little “hmm,” like she was both curious and overwhelmed by what was happening. The noise pleased him so much his mouth opened and so did hers, their tongues meeting in a glancing, tracing movement that had them both, all at once, pulling their heads back to catch each other’s eye.

They breathed hard, his muscles starting to protest at how tightly he clutched her. Their eyes bounced back and forth, trying to read one another. He could see nothing but her desire for him. Couldn’t see past it. Maybe because it utterly shocked him. She’d spent so long putting distance between them and now here she was, her fingers tangled in the back of his shirt, her tongue tracing her bottom lip, tasting his flavor that he was sure still lingered there.

Affectionate, gentle, passionate.Her words describing him were on a loop in his head, taunting him. Confusing him. He’d become so used to the idea of her barely tolerating him that the idea of her admiring him didn’t compute.

He tore his eyes from her gaze and stared directly at that mouth of hers. Her white teeth peeked out. Her lips, so plush and pouty, but he knew, viscerally, just how goofy that mouth could be when she was smiling, really smiling.

Her hand moved on his back and again, there was another jolting shock of static electricity. This time he even heard the snap of it, like a starting gun at a footrace. They both dived back into the kiss, wasting no movements with pleasantries. Her tongue tasted his once, twice, drew back, inviting him into her mouth.

She made that noise again, and Tyler let one of his hands trace up to cup the back of her head; his other hand finding the small of her back. In this way, he held her, told her in every way he knew just how badly he wanted her. Had wanted her for so long.

Might always want her.

The idea left him gasping as he turned his head to one side, breaking the kiss. But she took his chin and pressed her mouth to his again, soft and fierce at once, sucking his lower lip. Her teeth were just starting to scrape along his lip when they both heard footsteps coming down the hall behind them.

They instantly sprang away from one another, and as their bodies came apart, three or four sparks of almost painful static shock zapped between them. Whether it was punishment for separating or for having come together in the first place, Ty had no idea.

Fin turned before he could catch her expression and plunged her hands back into the dishwater, rifling through the dirty dishes. Tyler turned and picked up the Tupperware, marching mechanically to the fridge.

“Hey, Ty?”

“Yeah?” he responded. Knowing Kylie was leaning in the doorway of the kitchen, he stuck his head behind the open door of the fridge and took a few deep breaths, surreptitiously fixing his hair, hoping he didn’t look too indecent when he looked up at her. Meanwhile, he could still feel Fin’s hot mouth pressed against his, the imprint of her long body, softer than he’d expected, banded against his own, his colorful blood still high-speed chasing itself through his veins.

“One side of my headphones isn’t playing. I think they’re broken.”

“Oh.” He closed the fridge door and stood up, concentrated on his sister’s words. “Crap. We just bought those.”

“I know.” She grimaced. “Think we can return them?”

“Sure.”

“But can I take yours for the trip?”

He blinked. She’d never asked to borrow anything of his before. Hell, it had taken her long enough to even appear comfortable using his cups. She used to just fill and refill her own water bottle.

“Oh. Sure. No problem. Let me grab them.” He padded back to his bedroom and took a minute just to sit on his cool bedspread.

“Holy shit,” he muttered to himself, dropping his head in his hands. “Holy shit.”

Fin had kissed him. No. Wait. He’d kissed her? Damn. The details suddenly seemed extremely important. He hadn’t pushed it, had he?

He thought of her face right before they kissed, her eyes on his mouth, how hard she’d gripped his shirt. He winced because the memory of it was so potent it hurt, like a hard suck on a lime.

He stood, gave himself a mental shake and dug through his desk drawer, pulling out his headphones.

He walked back out to where Fin and Kylie were chatting in the kitchen still. He saw that Fin had finished the dishes and was drying her hands.

“Here you go,” he said, handing over the headphones. “Make sure to leave yours out so that I can return them while you’re gone.”

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