Page 21 of Redemption

His eyes hold mine, and I can’t look away.

His face is motionlessness, but his eyes have changed. They suddenly look almost hungry. He lifts a hand and brushes his knuckles against my cheek.

I suck in a thick breath at the light caress. Then I reach out to brush my fingertips against his jaw. His bristles scratch against my skin deliciously.

His hand moves to the back of my neck, cupping the base of my skull.

I’m not actually sure whether I move myself or whether he draws my head up toward his, but one way or the other, we end up kissing.

His lips are light at first, almost questioning, but the touch sends ripples of pleasure down my spine. Then he takes my head in both hands and holds me in place so he can kiss me harder. His tongue slips into my mouth.

My body erupts in shivers of excitement, sensation. I cling to his shoulders and return the kiss eagerly.

“Louisa,” he murmurs against my lips, suddenly grabbing, pulling me closer. He edges his own body against mine, sliding one hand down to the small of my back.

I’ve never had a kiss like this before. Not once in my life. It’s never felt like my soul would burst out of my skin from nothing more than the touch of a man’s lips and tongue. My head is so full I can’t think, can’t process, can’t do anything but feel.

I comb my fingers through his hair and then suddenly clench a fistful of it as his hand moves down my body even farther so he’s palming my ass through the thin fabric of my stylish pants. Arousal pulses between my legs as he strokes my body with bold entitlement.

This is Caleb. Touching me this way.

Making me feel better than… anything.

I moan into his mouth as his hand keeps moving.

I lift a leg to hook it eagerly around his legs. He’s already hard in his pajama pants. I can feel the bulge. I rub against it, thrilled with the evidence that he wants me.

I’m starting to slip a hand under his shirt when he jerks dramatically.

He tears his mouth away from mine and pushes me away. Not violent but forceful.

I step back clumsily, about a foot away from him now, and I gasp in disappointment and bewilderment. “Wh-what?”

“No.” His face twists painfully. “No, we can’t do that.”

“But… why not?” My body is still pulsing. I want him so much. I don’t understand why he isn’t still touching me.

“I’m not going to be that man.”

None of this is making any sense, or maybe my mind is too clouded to figure it out. “What man?”

“The man who… who takes ad—” He makes a strangled sound and takes a couple of steps away from me. “Your life is in danger. I’m the one responsible for protecting you. You’re scared. This is not…” He gives his head a rough shake. “No. I’m not going to be that man.”

I stare at him dazedly as he takes a deep breath and then walks stiffly down the hall and into the guest bathroom, closing the door behind him.

In just a few seconds, I hear the shower spray turn on.

I collapse against the kitchen counter.

In some ways, the rejection is worse than if he wasn’t even attracted to me. Didn’t even want me.

He does want me. I’m sure of it now.

At least his body does.

He was hard. I didn’t imagine that.

His body might want me, but Caleb is clearly not the kind of man to obey the dictates of his body.

---