Page 96 of The Young & the Sinner

I let out a deep sigh. “With what?”

“With everything. With how you’re feeling right now. I know it takes time before those emotions catch up to you.”

I shrugged, because I didn’t what to say to that.

He let out a small sigh, his breath moving my hair a little. “It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it. But when you do, I’m right here. Okay?”

I moved my arms around his middle, loving the way his muscles tensed beneath my touch. Loving how solid he felt.

He kissed the top of my head, and I moved in closer to him, seeking out his warmth. “You’re going to be okay,” he whispered.

I nodded.

I was going to be okay. I had to be. I wasn’t going to let this one small thing set me back entirely. I needed to get better. And perhaps it was today’s event, or even the fact that he came to me, but I was feeling especially brave then.

“Can you kiss me, Mason?” I asked.

“Olivia.” His voice was barely audible. He traced my lips with his finger, and I closed my eyes, savoring his touch. “It’s not a good idea.”

I grabbed his hand to keep it on my face when I felt him pull away. I turned to it and kissed the inside of his palm. He sucked in a sharp breath. “How could you think a kiss is a bad idea when I feel like this with you?”

When he didn’t say anything, I brought his hand down to my chest. “Can you feel that?” I asked.

“Your heart?”

I nodded.

“It’s beating so fast,” he said.

“That’s for you. My heart has been beating like that since the moment I met you. How could this be a bad idea?” I asked again.

And I could feel his resolve thinning, so I leaned forward and kissed his chest, his neck… his jawline. Anywhere I could reach, really. And Mason didn’t push me away.

His hand stayed on my chest, and I was sure he could feel my nipples hardening. There was no way to disguise that, not with the thin camisole I was wearing.

“Kiss me, Mason.”

I couldn’t be the one to make the first move. I just couldn’t. I thought it might kill me if I ended up being the one to initiate everything. I needed him to take over. To take control. To tell me how to feel, how to breathe, and how to move.

“I just don’t want to think anymore.” I whispered desperately.

He hesitated for a single moment, and I held my breath, feeling like I was drowning.

But then I felt his lips on mine, and I was so relieved, I could sob. It felt like I had just taken my first breath after being under water for so long.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him in closer to me. Closer and closer, and still, it wasn’t close enough.

We were on our sides when he kissed me, but then he gently pushed me on my back, and his upper body was on top of mine as he continued to kiss me, softly, reverently.

I opened my mouth to deepen the kiss, and Mason groaned, the noise causing a vibration between both of our lips that I felt all the way down between my legs.

I ached for him.

I needed him more than I needed my next breath, and I wanted more.

I grabbed the hair by his neck and pulled and felt him come alive beneath my fingertips.

Mason’s hands moved down my body, exploring every crevice, every curve he came in contact with, leaving a trail of goosebumps in his wake. Then he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me in even closer.

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