Page 53 of Cold Front
The first touch of his lips was soft, tentative, almost like he was testing the waters. But it was enough to send a jolt through my whole body, something that started low in my stomach and shot straight to my chest. Heat exploded inside me, spreading fast, burning through my veins like wildfire.
His lips parted, just enough for me to feel the tremor in his breath as he inhaled, as if he was trying to process this too, trying to figure out if this was real. His hand tightened around mine, a pulse of warmth that shot straight through my arm and down to my fingers. I could feel every inch of him now, pressed against me, and fuck, I wanted more.
The thought hit me before I could stop it. I wanted to touch him. I wanted to slide my hands under that hoodie of his, feel the smoothness of his skin and the hard, tantalizing peaks of his pierced nipples—the ones I couldn’t stop thinking about since I first saw them, like they were burned into my brain. I wanted to see how he’d react, to feel him squirm and shiver beneath my touch.
But I kept my hands still, my body betraying me with how badly I wanted to touch him. To claim him.
Eli didn’t pull away. If anything, he leaned in closer, his lips parting a little more, his breath mixing with mine, warm and sweet. His mouth felt like it belonged against mine, soft but demanding in the way he kissed back.
I was lost in the feeling of him, the taste of him, the heat between us. My body was hardening against him, a deep ache building low in my belly that I couldn’t ignore. I could feel the pressure of it, thick and undeniable, like everything inside me was unraveling in the best possible way.
And I didn’t want it to stop.
I needed more. Needed him more.
A beat later, reality slammed into me like a freight train. I pulled back fast, my chest rising and falling too quickly, trying to get some air, but all I could taste was Eli. His lips. His warmth.
Eli blinked at me, still standing too close, his lips parted, eyes wide, dark with something I couldn’t name. Something raw. Maybe it was there before, but now it was like a flickering flame between us, threatening to catch fire.
I swallowed hard, trying to steady my breath. “That?—”
“Yeah.” His voice was rough, barely more than a whisper. He cleared his throat, his hand fidgeting nervously at his side. “So, that happened.”
I could feel my pulse in my ears, my heart racing, my brain scrambling to make sense of what the hell had just happened. This wasn’t supposed to be anything. Just a kiss. But my body didn’t know how to shut off what I felt.
Eli’s lips twitched, amusement flickering across his face, but there was something else behind his eyes now, something just as shaken as I was. “Gotta say, Captain, didn’t think shipbuilding would get that hands-on.”
The attempt at humor fell flat against the weight in the air between us. I groaned, dragging a hand down my face, the heat of the moment still lingering. I couldn’t think straight. “Don’t. Just… don’t.”
Eli’s grin faltered for a moment, his expression shifting—hesitant, like he wasn’t sure how to react. There was a flicker of something deeper in his eyes, something almost too vulnerable to show, before he quickly masked it with a sharp breath and looked away before looking back at me, his gaze steady.
Then he stood, his shoulders tight, his jaw clenched. He took a breath like he was trying to find the words, but when he spoke, it wasn’t the playful teasing I’d expected.
“You know…” His voice dropped to a quieter, more guarded tone. He paused, and his gaze flickered away for a second before he met my eyes again, something raw in them. “I don’t want to mess this up. The camaraderie we’re building, you know? I don’t want things to be weird between us.” He ran a hand through his hair, his jaw tightening. “I’m not looking to get caught up in something that isn’t real.” He took another breath, his words coming out carefully, like he was measuring them. “And I’m not here to be someone’s experiment for their sexual awakening.” His gaze softened briefly, but then he turned, the weight of his words hanging between us. “I just—” His gaze dropped, his fingers twitching at his sides like he didn’t know what to do with them. “I just—I’ve been through enough already.” He let out a sharp exhale. “I’ll… let you figure out what you need to.”
He gave me a last, uncertain look before he turned and walked out, leaving me standing there, still reeling from everything that had just happened.
CHAPTER20
ELI
Steam curled around me, clinging to my skin as I braced my hands against the cool tile of the shower wall. Water pounded against my back, but it did nothing to drown out the pounding in my chest.
I kissed him.
No, he kissed me.
I exhaled hard, pressing my forehead against the tile. What the hell just happened? My lips still tingled, a phantom echo of Niall’s mouth on mine, and I hated how I could still feel it. Still taste him. Like I’d somehow inhaled him into my bloodstream, and now I couldn’t get him out.
It was just a kiss. That’s what I told myself, but it wasn’t true. There had been weight behind it, something that hummed beneath my skin, something that made my stomach twist because I wasn’t sure what it meant. And I couldn’t afford to let myself get swept up in something if it wasn’t real.
I shut off the water and grabbed a towel, roughly drying off before stepping into my room. My phone buzzed on the nightstand. A reminder to call home.
Perfect timing.
Heart still unsettled, I sat on the bed and hit the video call button. It rang twice before my mom’s face filled the screen.
“Elijah,” she said, eyes narrowing immediately. “What’s wrong?”
