Page 34 of The Dragon's Captured Heart
“I—what?”
“You said I was kissing guys,” I said, stressing the plural. “I will have you know that it is not true. Not only that, I didn’t kiss you.”
He scoffed, his long sandy brown hair bouncing with the movement before settling on either side of his face, a handful of unruly hairs stuck to his stubble. “You did, too.”
“No, I didn’t,” I countered, licking dry lips to keep them wet. “You kissed me. It’s very different.”
Callum laughed. “Oh, no, you don’t. You one hundred percent kissed me.”
“Your memory must not be as good as you think it is because I distinctly remember crouching down on the roof when, out of nowhere, for no good reason, you just leaned in and kissed me. Your lips to mine, bam. That, in my world, is called a kiss.”
It had been a good kiss, too. Callum knew how to steal it from a woman. He’d come in quickly, striking without warning, but after that, there was nothing but gentle confidence. A man who knew he was taking it yet didn’t have to keep pouring it on. Instead, he let the kiss do the talking for him.
Subconsciously, my hand came up toward my mouth, but I caught myself before my fingers touched my lips to find the echoes of his mouth there.
“You didn’t pull away,” Callum pointed out with that same quiet confidence, brushing aside my objections. “And then you kissed me back.”
“You had a hand on my head,” I countered.
“Only as backup. You never tried to pull away.”
“It was instinct,” I said. “That’s all. I reacted, nothing more.”
“You could’ve reacted by pulling away. Pushing me. Hitting me even. I was ready for that.”
“Why even kiss me then?” I exclaimed, shaking my head.
“I needed you to be quiet.” He grinned. “It worked, and you didn’t do anything to stop it. I think you liked it. Maybe even wanted it.”
“How can you want something that you had never considered?”
Now, I was lying, making things up. Kissing Callum had entered my mind more than once. It was a temptation, nothing more, one I’d never allowed to grace the light of day outside the very back of my mind. But how could I not think of it? The way things sparked every time we made contact, even accidentally, was a constant distraction. Then there were his unfair good looks, with those intoxicating eyes I could stare into for ages, or his buff figure with those broad shoulders and giant, powerful arms, biceps stretching any shirt he wore to its limits.
The combination was like a drug. Kidnapping aside, Laura’s argument about fate aside,everythingaside, the man was a walking sex advertisement, and he was turning it onme, whether he meant to or not. There was no avoiding it.
Even now, a gentle tingle from between my legs teased what could be if I would only let it.
“Oh, we both know you had considered it,” Callum murmured. “And in the end, like it or not, you didn’t hate it.”
At some point, he’d come a little closer, moving around the coffee table. Now, there was no physical barrier between us. Alarm bells were going off in my head, signaling this was no accident, that he was doing it purposefully.
“Did you?” he said, prying with gentle words, forcing me to answer instead of ignore.
He was in charge now, at some point having assumed command of the conversation and turning it against me.
Damn him. Though he’s not wrong.
“You’re an okay kisser,” I said, looking away, crossing my arms, trying to radiate all the signs to say “stay away,” even as my heart pounded loudly enough I was sure he could hear it.
I was nervous. My hands were clammy. My breathing shortened. My nerves were on fire, noticing every shift of my clothing as I adjusted my weight, trying to disperse the tingly energy building within.
“Just okay?” he teased.
Looking up—when had he gotten so close?!—I struggled to find an answer that would do what I knew I should:End the conversation.But I didn’t want to be a bitch. There was no need for that. Not now.
Not when I could just smell the hint of fresh campfire that tickled my nose as he came near. It was pheromones, I knew, and because I knew, I should be able to say no.
But I couldn’t. I was losing the battle, slowly being overpowered by his presence.
