Page 215 of Sigils & Spells

“Daniel?” she questioned as she placed her palms flat on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him. No way she couldn’t tell how into her he was from that motion, but there was no helping that.

“Yes, Ravyn.”

“Will you be my first kiss?”

He blinked, momentarily stunned. “Your fi—”Oh, God.If she’d never been kissed, then she’d never… She was a virgin. “Baby, if you aren’t ready, you don’t have—”

“I want to.” She leaned in closer. “I’ve wanted to since I first met you.”

There was no arguing with that! Daniel ran his hands up her sides to her shoulders and then lightly cupped her face, leaning in until his lips met hers. Desire spooled around his spine like an electric coil, and his tongue dipped out to taste her. The minty chocolate she’d eaten at the end of their meal made her kiss even sweeter than anticipated.

He had intended it to be a chaste kiss.

What he hadn’t counted on was Ravyn’s passion matching his so precisely. She mimicked his actions, and soon her tongue was meeting his. Before he had time to realize what was happening, she controlled the kiss. Welcoming her boldness, he let her explore, to find what she liked and didn’t. The feel of her hands on his shoulder and in his hair excited him more than he wanted it to right now. Not when she wasn’t ready for sex.

She broke away, breathing heavily. Her eyes were heavy lidded, and her black hair billowed in the night breeze. “I could kiss you all night.”

Man, oh man, he wanted that.

“I would gladly let you.”

She moved, and her hip brushed his groin. Daniel grunted under his breath, but she definitely noticed and giggled. “We should probably stop before I cause any more discomfort. If you don’t mind, I’d like to take things slow. I’ve never been allowed to date, and I’m having a great night with you.” She paused, looking shy after having been so bold with her kissing earlier. He found it endearing. “The last thing I want is for you to think I’m just a tease.”

He nodded, not knowing how to respond. “I like that you trust me enough to see what you’re ready for and what you’re not. Let me take you back to campus.”

As he guided her to the car, he wondered if asking her to be his girlfriend would be considered too fast considering she’d asked to move slowly. Perhaps he’d gauge her feelings on the subject more on the drive back. There was something about her that pulled him to her, and he wanted to know her better. See where things led.

*.*.*.*.*

Ravyn could floaton a cloud if she tried. She’d finally had her first kiss with a guy, and Daniel had been so patient and not at all overbearing. He’d sounded like he was in agony when she accidently bumped his…well, the way his body let her know how into her he was did things that made her want to move much, much faster, but what if doing too much too soon caused her to shift or something? If she fell in love with him, she risked killing him—according to her family “curse.”

Curses are not real.

So says the bird shifter that watches over the homes or sites of death or disaster.

Ugh.

She turned her gaze toward the ocean as Daniel pulled out of his car’s hiding spot and down the road toward campus. “You’ll have to take me around the island when the moon is full and bright.”

His grin could light up the night as much as the moon could. “That can definitely be arranged.”

She smiled. Daniel was everything she could want. Patient, caring, and something told her he would be protective and gallant as well. The perfect gentleman. Handsome too. Maybe with a hint of a naughty streak judging by the way that kiss had ignited something in her that made her want to ignore her own boundaries and leap off the cliff of desire with him. She could tell he’d wanted to let his hands roam as well as unburdening her of her virginity—which was such a silly concept to begin with. Sex didn’t change a person’s body. Puberty did. But, bless the poor guy, he had been so considerate, and she definitely wanted more. Just not…tonight.

She frowned, leaning forward as much as the seatbelt would allow. “What’s that?”

Something bright stood out stark against the pitch-dark road ahead of where the headlights reached. Daniel’s tone reciprocated her unease at the mysterious figure as they drove toward it. “It’s a lady, I think.”

Instinct sent ice through her veins. “Don’t stop the car.”

Daniel looked at her, and though Ravyn didn’t face him, not wanting to let the figure out of her sight, the weight of his disbelief fell over her. “What if she’s in trouble?”

“What if she just wanted to take a walk?” Ravyn countered. If she voiced her true concern, would he even believe her? “We should leave her alone.”

He sighed, clearly confused by her reaction. “I’ll take you home and come back to check on her.”

“No!” She finally faced him once the lady disappeared from view in the side mirror. “Never, ever, ever, stop the car for a woman in white on the side of the road.” He was looking at her with complete bewilderment now. “Never, Daniel.”

“What, like an urban legend? She has to be a classmate, Ravyn.”

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