Page 83 of Forbidden Magic
When his hands slide below the fabric of my bikini bottoms, the tender skin of my hips aching for his touch to creep lower, I tear my mouth away. “It was odious.” My heart is in my throat, beating furiously at the falsehood.
A dark chuckle vibrates across my neck. “Liar, liar, witch on fire.”
He traces the swirly flames licking the hollow of my neck down to the space between my breasts with a proud,vilegrin.
I lost. I made a deal with a Fae and lost.
My fists curl, my stupid heart hammering. A dark, heavy shadow rattles inside me, eclipsing the self-loathing.
Standing on my tiptoes, I press my lips back into Cole’s…and bite him.
A steely, spicy hint of Fae blood explodes across my tongue.
His hand pushes against the back of my head. He did that the first time, crushing me to him like he owns me. It drives me wild.
I shove him off. “Swear to me that you’re not Allie’s secret boyfriend. Swear that nothing happened between you two on Halloween?” I watch and listen intently not to be fooled by a lie.
“I’m not your sister’s boyfriend. Why would you think that?”
But his mouth is at my neck, and I can’t remember why I asked the question. It’s worse than an undertow, and the force of the pull makes my head spin. The warmth of his fingers against my hips feels scandalous—indecent.
The bathing suit is not thick enough to mask the shape of his erection when he presses his hips into mine, and we both hiss at the friction.
“Stop. I’m—I need—” I need more. I have to go. “We can’t do this again.”
“We’re bound to do this again.”
“Don’t say that. This kiss meant nothing.”
“Nothing at all.”
I’m babbling, but I can’t seem to shut up. “You’re obnoxious. I’m not one of your groupies. And I have agoodboyfriend.”
“All you’re missing is a bad one.” He stretches out to capture my lips again, and fuck it, I reciprocate.
I play with fire every day. This feels more volatile and dangerous than bottling a bolt of lightning.
My nerve endings are short-circuiting with heat and need. A heavy fullness hovers low in my belly, and my thighs quiver. My skin tingles, my vision heightened.
He presses me harder against the rock at my back and cups my ass. All I want is to wrap my legs around him and shed the wet fabric holding us back.
I duck under his arm and stagger away, my skin screaming in disapproval.
He’s fighting for breath, his eyes so dark that it would bring me some pride if I didn’t feel so exposed.
I hold out my hands. “Stay back.”
“Is that really what you want?”
From the way he asks the question, I think he will respect an inaccurate and insincere “yes,” even though he knows it’s crap. My brain won’t allow me to lie, so I stay silent. I thread my fingers in his hair and pull his mouth to mine one last time. He grins against the kiss but doesn’t deepen it, letting me flee. But God, the devilish smile on his swollen lips gives me no doubt that this is merely a timeout.
I’ve officially gone insane. Either that or I’m spellbound. I chew the possibility, the brush of Cole’s tongue still fresh in my memory, and admit that it’s probably not about magic.
It’s the rivalry.
The connection.
The raw need to have him pinned beneath me and make him beg, and I know he feels the same. It’s a vicious, insidious thought because, while winning sounds pretty amazing, losing would be fucking incredible.
