Page 87 of Hunters and Hydrangeas

I take my time washing my face and brushing my teeth. Then I examine my chignon, proud that it stayed in place all evening. After that, I file my fingernails. When I catch myself toying with the idea of repainting my toenails, I decide I need to quit stalling.

Noah has already changed, but he passes me when I leave the bathroom.

“I need to brush my teeth, and then I’ll be out,” he says.

Unsure what to do with myself, I go out to the balcony and look at the ocean. Noah booked the room for several more days, but I suspect our time in Miami is wrapping up.

Noah joins me a few minutes later. He stands behind me and loops his arms around my middle. Together, we watch the moonlight play on the waves.

It’s nice, comfortable.

“We should go to bed,” Noah says after a while.

“Okay,” I reluctantly agree.

We step back into the light of the hotel room and close the balcony door and drapes.

“Will you take out the pins?” I ask, turning so my back is facing him.

“Hold still.” One by one, he pulls the sedative-laced pins from my hair and places them in their case. “Do you want me to remove these other pins?”

“Do you mind?”

“No.” Understanding the assignment, Noah removes a bobby pin…and then kisses the back of my neck. Then another…and another kiss.

I close my eyes, enjoying the butterfly riot in my stomach. The man is driving me mad, but in the best way.

When he pulls out the last pin, the twist falls, unraveling until my hair is free. Noah runs his fingers through it. If I were a cat, I’d purr.

“Thank you,” I murmur, turning around to face him.

We contemplate each other for several long seconds. And then I’m reaching for him, and he’s reaching for me, and our mouths crash together in a kiss that’s been a long time coming.

It’s not careful. It’s not hesitant.

It’s everything.

“Five minutes,” he says, his voice gritty and low. “And then we’re going to bed like good vampires.”

“I’m not sure all those words belong in the same sentence.”

He chuckles, darkly amused. I cut the sound off with my mouth, not about to waste a second of our five minutes. I wrap my hands around his back to keep my balance, enjoying the way his rock-hard muscles feel under my exploratory touch.

Noah is so much bigger than I am…and I like it. He easily picks me up, holding me around the back of my thighs as he sits on the bed.

And then I’m on his lap, which has quickly become my favorite place to be.

Our hearts race, creating a synchronized rhythm. I can’t tell which is his and which is mine. When he gently nips my bottom lip, I gasp, dropping my head back, begging him to explore.

Noah kisses down my jaw, and then just underneath it. I dig my fingers into his shoulder, preparing myself. Another soft kiss to my throat. Then another.

And then…

I panic.

Noah immediately stops when I jerk back. Concern shadows his face, his frown making me want to scream.

What’swrongwith me?

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