Page 85 of Mine to Protect

Still nope. He was going to be pissed.

“I don’t want to tell you,” I muttered from under the covers. Beads of sweat formed along my forehead and my palms beneath the sweltering covers. I needed fresh cold air, but no way was I ready to give up the mock safety of my blanket fort.

I yelped when cold air brushed down my face and arms as the blankets ripped from my tight fists. A shiver shook my shoulders and legs at the sudden contrast in temperatures.

“Talk. Now.”

I shook my head. This was fun. “And what if I don’t?”

“This isn’t a game, Lady.”

“Could it be?” Wow, okay, who said that? No way those words came out of my mouth.

One eyebrow rose along his forehead, and a mischievous smirk tugged at his lips. It was beautiful. Like that, he looked young, unlike the other 90 percent of the time when he looked pissed or stressed.

“How old are you?” I asked, cocking my head to the side, inspecting every inch of his handsome face.

“Old enough.”

“That’s vague.”

“Would it change your mind about me?”

“No,” I said with a laugh. “Why would it?”

“Then it doesn’t matter. I’m legal age, if that’s what you want to know.”

A giggle pushed past my lips, tickling my chest at the vibrations. A sense of awe settled over his face as he stared at my broad smile.

“You amaze me, Lady. All the world has dealt you and hear you are, smiling. How do you do it?” The sense of wonder in his tone made my heart swell.

My shoulders slid the sheets up and down with my shrug. “I don’t know if I would be if you weren’t here. You make it better.”

His scoffing laugh wiped the smile from my face. “Normally I’m the one making things worse.”

“Not with me,” I said. Reaching over, I tugged on his shoulder, making him roll on his side, facing me. “I’ve had more fun with you these past few days, even with all this going on, than I have in years. Years, Cas. And that’s because of you and who you are. You’re inclined to only see the worst in yourself, but I wish you’d be just as inclined to see the good, like me.”

His nostrils flared at my words. The bed shuddered as his breathing turned fast and heavy. “Say yes, Lady.”

I didn’t even think. “Yes.”

Lightning fast, his hand jutted across the small space between us to tangle in my hair. With a sharp tug, he slid me across the bed to him. Hand under my shoulder, he rolled my chest onto his.

Once, twice I blinked, staring down at his parted lips. Beneath me, his heart hammered against his chest, matching the racing of my own.

“All you have to say is stop,” he murmured as he angled my head to lengthen my neck. Warm, wet lips slid along my pulsing veins before teeth sank deep in the skin just below the collar of my sweatshirt. “I’m trusting you to tell me if this gets to be too much.”

“I trust you,” I groaned. On its own, my leg swept over his, hauling the rest of me over his long, lean body.

I gasped as the grip on my hair tightened, bringing my face to meet his. Fire burned behind his eyes. “Right now, I don’t. I’ve wanted this since you fell on your ass in the parking lot. I won’t stop unless you tell me to, do you understand?”

I tried to nod, but the grip on my hair was too tight to move. “Yes, Cas, yes. Now, please.”

The corners of his lips tugged upward in a cocky smirk. “Please what, Lady?”

“Kiss me,” I begged. Shifting my hips back and forth, I ground against him. “Take it away. Take away yesterday, the last ten years, all of it.” Focusing on keeping my breath steady, I dragged my quivering lips against his. “Give me a good memory to dwell on when everything else is falling apart around me. Give me you.”

“You already have me, Lady.”

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