Page 71 of Growing Into Love

She’s already gone. I quickly toss some bills on the bar, and head after her. She’s not in the lobby or on the grounds of the Fairview. I can’t believe I’ve lost her again.

That text was for you.

My heart leaps to my throat and pounds there rapidly.

For me. All along, it was for me.

There never was a David.

It feels like lightning is running through my veins, my blood spitting and crackling, my skin alight with electricity.

I’ve got to find Cass.

I run upstairs and see her at the end of the hall, leaning with her back against the door to our room, hands over her eyes. She hears my footsteps and shoots up straight.

“I forgot my key,” she says weakly.

I walk toward her slowly, deliberately, allowing my eyes to drink her in—her mussed hair, her plush mouth like a sweet little bow, the stubborn point of her chin. The way her fleece is slightly askew, revealing a peek of collarbone. The long line of her legs.

I stop only inches away from her. Her eyes are the softest azure, tentative and vulnerable. Her lower lip trembles. There are so many things I want to say. I want to apologize for taking so long to understand these feelings. I want to beg forgiveness for putting her in a box all these years. I want to tell her she’s the loveliest thing I’ve ever seen, more radiant than the summer sun.

The words stick to the back of my throat, Conversation Cat strangling me.

“Jaz?” Cass whispers hesitantly.

I cup my hands around her face, feeling the delicate line of her jaw against my palms. I stroke the elegant curve of her cheekbone with my thumb, marveling at the softness of her skin. How many times have I touched her over the years? Never like this. The electricity zinging in my veins makes my skin tingle. I feel a tug low in my belly, a blossoming need that makes me stiffen.

“Cass,” I murmur, my eyes fixed on the pout of that perfect lower lip. The fraction of space between us thrums like it has its own heartbeat. Every muscle in my body is clenched. I feel like a stone in a slingshot, pulled back and about to fly.

The sudden ding of the elevator has us springing apart. Shit. We can’t be doing this—it’s against the rules.

“Should we…” I gesture at the door.

“Yeah,” Cass says. The breathless tone of her voice sends shivers over my skin.

I fumble with the key and we enter the room. Once the door closes, darkness envelops us. The space between our bodies crackles with tension—I can almost see sparks floating in the air around us. Her breath is ragged in the quiet dark. My cock throbs, every fiber of me straining for her, wanting her, needing her.

“So,” I murmur. “There’s no David.”

Her eyes glint. “No,” she whispers. “There never was.”

I exhale, my heart thrumming. “Good,” I say.

Her breath hitches. “Good?”

I’m crap with words and I don’t feel like stammering around for them. I only want Cass.

I press her back against the wall with a dull thump. My lips brush against hers and something zaps between us, my lightning connecting us, running in currents over our skin. I slant my mouth over hers as my hand curls around the nape of her neck. She presses the long, lean line of her body against me, and my cock thrusts up, aching for her. She lets out a moan that reverberates inside my chest. I kiss her deeply, our tongues twining, the feel of her mouth its own private heaven. Then her hand moves to cup the bulge at my jeans and it’s my turn to moan, louder than hers. I can’t help myself. Cass’s lips leave a trail of kisses down my neck to where she bites my shoulder gently as she begins to stroke me over my jeans.

“Oh god,” I groan. My hand slams against the wall to steady myself as my tongue sweeps into her mouth, tasting her sweetness. She makes a little purring sound and hitches one leg up—I catch her thigh and hold it, my palm splayed flat as I slide my hand up to her ass. She’s taut and strong, like an arrow. I feast on her mouth, unable to stop kissing her, unwilling to leave what must be the most perfect embrace in the history of the world. She grinds against my cock and I let out another low moan.

There’s a sudden knock on the door and we spring apart. I fumble for the light switch.

“Oh shit,” Cass says, eyes wide.

“Hide,” I hiss.

“What?” she hisses back. “It’s my room!”

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