Page 27 of Price of Victory
I opened one of the packages he’d brought, some kind of imported crackers that probably cost twenty dollars, and offeredhim the box. When he took it, our fingers brushed again, and this time, I didn’t pull away immediately. The contact lasted maybe a second longer than necessary, but it was enough to send heat shooting through my entire nervous system.
“These are really good,” I said, trying to focus on anything other than the way he was looking at me.
“You sound surprised.”
“I am. I figured someone who grew up with a silver spoon would have terrible taste in normal food.”
“Ouch.” He shifted closer, close enough that I could smell his cologne. “I’ll have you know I have excellent taste in everything.”
The way he said it, with just enough emphasis on “everything,” made it clear he wasn’t just talking about food. I settled onto my bed across from him, close enough that our knees almost touched, and tried to ignore the way my body was responding to his proximity.
“So what have you been doing with yourself since our midnight snack session?” he asked.
“The usual. Classes, practice, homework. You know, normal college student stuff.”
“Thrilling. And here I thought you’d be out painting the town red, living it up with your modest lifestyle.”
“Sorry to disappoint. Some of us don’t have the energy for constant excitement.”
“Maybe you just haven’t found the right kind of excitement.” His eyes were dark, focused on me with an intensity that made my breath catch.
There was definitely innuendo in that, and the way he was looking at me made it clear he wasn’t talking about nightlife. I felt my face heating up again, that familiar flush that seemed to happen every time he turned his attention on me like this.
“You’re doing it again,” I said.
“Doing what?”
“That thing where you flirt just to see if you can make me uncomfortable.”
“Who says I’m flirting to make you uncomfortable?” He leaned closer, close enough that I could see the flecks of gold in his green eyes. “Maybe I’m flirting because I want to. Because I’ve wanted to for a long time.”
The honesty in his voice caught me completely off guard. This wasn’t his usual performance, the calculated charm he used like a weapon. This felt raw, genuine, and it was infinitely more dangerous than his typical seduction routine.
“Aiden…”
“What? You can’t tell me you haven’t thought about it.” He gestured between us, and the air felt electric with possibility. “I can see it in the way you look at me, the way your breath changes when I get close to you. The way you’re looking at me right now.”
“I don’t?—”
“You do. And for the record, the feeling is very mutual.”
My heart was pounding so hard I was sure he could hear it. We were sitting close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body, could count the individual eyelashes that framed those devastating eyes. The space between us felt charged, like touching it might result in actual combustion.
“This is insane,” I said, but I didn’t move away from him.
“Is it? Or is it the first sane thing either of us has considered in months?”
He reached out slowly, giving me time to pull away, and brushed my cheeks with the back of his index finger. The gesture was so gentle it made my breath catch, but his hand lingered against my cheek, thumb brushing over my skin in a way that made my eyes flutter closed.
“Rhett.” His voice was soft, rough around the edges. “Look at me.”
When I opened my eyes, he was closer than before, close enough that I could feel his breath on my lips. The careful control I’d been maintaining for weeks was starting to slip, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to catch it anymore.
“You’re beautiful,” he said quietly, his thumb still stroking my cheek. “Do you know that? You’re absolutely beautiful, and you have no idea what you do to me.”
The words were my undoing. All the tension, all the want, all the careful resistance I’d been maintaining crashed down at once. I reached out and swept everything off the bed between us, food, bags, packaging, sending it all tumbling to the floor in my desperation to eliminate any barrier between us.
And then I kissed him.
