Page 33 of Keeping Ava

Our food is served, my glass filled with wine, and his handsome face standing beside a chair waiting for me to sit. God help me, it’s too much. After everything he’s done for me, the surprise and being so damn understanding, I give in.

All of me wants this.

I’m not strong, and before I talk myself out of this moment, I walk straight toward him and press my lips to his.

Immediately his body becomes stiff, but I don’t pull back. No, I stand firm, holding onto his shirt as I take a small nibble of his bottom lip.

And it’s that bite, that hint of pain that snaps him out of his rigidness. He kisses me back, overtaking my senses as he growls low at the back of his throat, his tongue sliding against my own lip and demanding entrance.

An entrance that I grant without hesitation.

This kiss is everything; it’s passionate and bordering on desperate with a hint of sweetness that I know I’ll never find with anyone else. The way Elijah takes my mouth is possessive, a domination of my senses as our tongues meet and caress.

His large, strong hands cup the back of my head, thumbs tilting my head back at the angle he prefers. He controls this. Me.

Giving me what I need with his touch. Hard yet gentle. A delicious overtaking.

My tongue swipes the very tip of his, flicking it before pulling back to suck his top lip, and a hungry groan escapes him. It tumbles through me, settling on my clit, and I throb—squeezing my thighs tight as my panties become slick with my arousal.

I’m wet and tender. For him. All for him.

My nipples ache, and I can’t stop myself from rubbing my chest against his. This time his animalistic sound is almost angry and I shiver, shifting closer, and there’s no mistaking the hardness now digging into my abdomen.

How it pulses, flexing against the inside of his jeans the more we kiss.

My hands itch to touch him. To explore.

“Oh God,” I whimper, and that small sound stops him. It’s like a bucket of cold water being thrown over my head; the way he abruptly pulls his mouth from mine makes me feel like an idiot. Like I ruined everything. Elijah doesn’t release his hold on my head, though, but instead stares down at me, making me feel self-conscious. “I’m so—”

“Don’t.” It’s gravelly. Hungry. “I’m not.”

“You’re not?”

“I’m not.” His thumb rubs across my cheek once while his other hand takes one of mine, squeezing my fingers slightly. “But one thing at a time. How about dinner and some light get-to-know-you conversation before I kiss you again?”

“Again?” I raise a brow, and the tension in my shoulders drops a bit. He’s being playful; that’s a good thing, and I follow his lead. “I made the first move.”

“That’s only because I let you.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“What can I say? I’m irresistible.” With that, he brings his lips to mine once more in a quick and soul-destroying kiss before pulling back. I’m a bit dazed and smiling and ready to smack him when he winks. “Now, feed me, woman, so I can cuddle with you on the couch and watch a movie afterwards.”

I’m so easy when it comes to him that continuing to hold myself back is nearly impossible.

Chapter 11

Elijah

My neck is stiff, but my left side is deliciously warm.

I’m sitting up on the couch, neck angled down a bit and lending my shoulder and arms to a companion who’s driving me insane, more so, after her confession yesterday. After what that son of a bitch tried to do…

I want to kill him. I’m going to break his neck with my bare hands.

It’s made my already protective instincts go into overdrive. Made the feelings I’ve fought hard to ignore—my wants—sucker punch me in the face as I deal with our reality.

I want her. All of her.

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