Page 38 of Dark of Winter (Wild Haven 1)

Relationship or not there’s no way Davis hasn’t had girls drooling over his bad boy vibe and beautiful face. My little green jealousy monster that has Davis’s name written on it is not happy thinking about Davis with someone else. Kissing someone, putting his hands on them, sticking things inside them. I don’t like this game anymore.

“I really hope you haven’t slept with someone on this tiny island. How impossible would it be to try to ghost someone, cause let’s be honest, that’s exactly what you would do, if you had to see them all the time. I’m guessing everyone in this town knows about two seconds after a penis is inserted into a vagina.” Oh, shit. Yeah, so I went there. What is wrong with me?

“Holy shit, Miri.” Laugher spills out, real unadulterated laughter that sounds like liquid sunlight. If I thought he was good looking before in all his surly manliness, well, that doesn’t hold a candle to the brightness of his smile. On impulse, I step forward into his space and press my lips to his.

His surprise rivals my own, and for a second neither of us moves, our lips resting against each other’s, motionless. I start to pull back, but Davis makes a growling sound in the back of his throat and grabs my hips. He hauls me flush to his body as he slants his head and captures my mouth in a kiss that has my body blazing like a lightning strike. I melt into him, and his hands explore the curve of my hips and ass, the arch of my back. My hands rasp against the unshaven skin of his face before looping around his neck and dragging him closer to me.

The kiss is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I swear I can taste the rain and the sea on his lips. His tongue sweeps against mine in a delicious exploration, and I moan low in the back of my throat. My fingers tingle where they touch his skin, little pulses of electricity zipping over my flesh, leaving me writhing against him wantonly. I ache for him, burn for him.

Davis makes a low, demanding sound against my mouth, using his body to push us away from the railing. He walks me backward, and I let him lead me blindly until my back hits the side of the house. His hand drives into my hair, pulling my head back to deepen the kiss. There’s a desperation in the way his mouth devours me. Like a drowning man needs air, a starving one needs to eat. I’m his sustenance and the only thing that will take away the cravings in his soul.

The stone on the wall behind me is hard and unforgiving, but so is the man in front of me. Davis’s body is flush against mine as he presses into me. His hand runs down my thigh, hooking around a knee and pulling it up so that he can grind against me. The movement hits me so perfectly that I tear free from our kiss, my head tipping back as I gasp in pleasure.

The moment my lips leave his I regret it, because the connection between us is severed as surely as a blade cuts through string. I immediately want to pull his mouth back to me. To feel that spark, that fierce need that his one kiss accomplished that no one else has even come close to igniting within me.

Our chests heave with our rapid breathing, but the night around us is quiet. It’s hard to believe the entire world didn’t just burst into flames, and it’s only the two of us who are shaken. I’m still caught tight against Davis’s body, but he’s stopped touching and exploring. The longing, the empty ache that starts in my heart and spreads out like a wave, leaves me bereft.

I want to tear off our clothes and feel all of his naked skin against mine. Instead, he’s staring at me like I’ve tricked him. Discomfort and embarrassment sting my pride as Davis slowly releases my leg, letting it drift back to the ground. Thank God I’ve got the house behind me to keep me upright, otherwise I think my knees might have given out at this point. Davis takes a step back and cold air takes his place, making me shiver. I cross my arms and stare at him wide-eyed as he takes another step back, his hand rubbing over his mouth.

Is he wiping away my kiss or confirming that what just happened was real? It feels like a dream, although the way he’s backing away from me makes me wonder if he thinks it’s a nightmare.

“I should go.”

“Looks like you’re on your way.” He’s halfway down the porch steps already.

He nods like we’re just saying a regular old goodbye and he hadn’t just been dry humping me in the front yard. His hand runs through his hair, and he almost lifts it in a wave goodbye, but then stops. I can only assume because he realized how stupid that would be. I watch while he turns his back to me, tossing on his helmet and kick starting his bike with a loud roar.

I keep thinking he’ll turn around to apologize or come back, but he doesn’t.

Just like that, he’s gone. And crap, he’s probably going to ghost me.

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