Page 42 of Savage Ruin
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A finger runsdown the side of my cheek and I smile. But it’s not Mateo’s face I see when I open my eyes. Instead, Grayson’s blue eyes and chiseled features greet me. Although his eyes are fixed on me, his mind seems a million miles away.
The sun is still shining through the windows, but with a little less intensity than when we went to sleep.
“How long did we sleep?” My hand sweeps the bed for my phone, but I can’t find it.
“Three hours,” he replies huskily. “The best sleep I’ve had in weeks. Thank you for staying with me.” His finger swipes lightly over my cheekbones. “The bruises are almost gone, although the memory of what you looked like when we found you that day pisses me off whenever I think about it.” He places feather light kisses on each cheekbone.
Somewhere along the way, we took a step closer today, but what does it mean? Is he aware of the shift?
“Grayson, what are you doing?” I ask quietly. “Every time I think I’ve figured you out, you throw me a curve ball. Like today. I expected the extravagant yacht, but then you bring me in here and it’s almost like a secret glimpse into your soul.”
I cup his jaw. “But if you run true to form, you’ll revert to the distant, polite roommate when we get home. You only have two temps—blazing hot and ice cold. What do you want from me?”
His breath rushes out. “A kiss,” he rasps. “With no anger, no regrets. A kiss you would only share with me, no other. That’s what I want.” His eyes are almost navy with desire while he waits for my answer, but it’s the look of contemplation that entices me.
The heat and passion of our first kiss flickers in my mind. Without the anger and adrenaline, would it be the same? Maybe it’s time we found out. I lift my chin toward him. “Yes.”
His arms pull me in tighter, until I’m almost underneath him, and his warm body settles firmly into mine like he’s intent on staying a while. His lips descend, lightly tasting and sucking my bottom lip, before delving a little bit deeper into the kiss. Tongues slip and stroke languidly, almost lazy in their approach. The kind of kiss that could last all day.
Reaching up to cup his neck, I turn my head and pull him deeper into the kiss, replacing the languidness with heat. Thoughts vanish, the world follows, until it’s him and me and this moment. The passion building rapidly between us.
He groans and settles his hips fully against me. Rock hard, he deliberately pushes against my body, making me feel every inch.
Gasping, I turn my head for air, but his lips chase mine, capturing and holding them hostage. This time, the heat changes to an inferno, driven by the need passing back and forth between us in equal measure. Now I’m burning from the inside out, and I can only quench my thirst with his lips.
Suddenly, we’re at the peak and teetering on the edge. We force our lips apart and stare at each other. Breathing heavily, the aftermath of this intense kiss thrums in our veins calling to us like a siren to finish what we’ve started, but unlike the desire-filled moment at the ball, this is more than a turning point. Its repercussions are deep and full of the unknown.
At almost the exact same time, we step back from the precipice yawning before us. I stroke my fingers down his jaw, then let gravity take it down to my side. He slides off me and rolls over to his back, neither of us ready to leap.
CHAPTER22
HENLEY
Thiago’s thick arm wraps around my body in a move he calls a rear choke hold. Whatever it is, I can’t get out of it, and I’ve been trying for a half hour. He patiently waits while I move through the motions he’s taught me, but nothing happens. I must be missing something.
His gruff voice is low in my ear, causing shivers to run down my spine. “Walk through the steps, okay?”
I blow my hair out of my eyes and shake my head. “Grab onto the attacker’s arm to create some space between his arm and my neck and put my chin down to prevent him from moving it closer.” My movements follow the words closely.
“Good. Next.”
“Take a step forward with the foot on the opposite side of his elbow. Bring my other foot into his body, bend down, swing around, and push off his chest to flee.” I stop talking and follow through with my body. But it doesn’t matter what I do, I can’t manage the turn and bend part of it. I blow my hair out of my eyes.
“We’ll keep working on it. Make sure to keep your chin tucked, with a tight neck. Protecting your neck is your first priority,” he instructs me. “You can’t get away if you’re unconscious.” His body moves in behind me.
We practice for another twenty minutes, but I’m not getting it. Frustration beats at me.
Hard fingers gently grip my chin and pull my head up to meet his eyes. “You’re doing great. Even when you think you’re failing, you’re not. Your body will remember more than you think it does. Just keep putting in the practice.”
I bite the inside of my cheek for a second, hesitating to tell him my worst fear. “Don’t give up on me, okay? If I can’t get this one, can we work on another move and come back to it later?”
He blinks and his face fills with fury. “Why the hell do you think I’d give up on you?”
I shrug and try to look away from his furious stare, but he refuses to let go of my chin, so I blurt it all out. “When I first got here, I felt like I was getting to know you. The person you are here, not Thiago Santos, CEO of SEI. But when you withdrew, I thought maybe I was becoming a nuisance or a burden or something. And it’s okay. Seriously. I understand you’re busy, and waking up every night to deal with my nightmares is exhausting.”
He blows out a breath and throws up his hands.
