Page 47 of Silver Edge
For my body’s on fire and I need you to stoke the flame.
My fingers strummed the strings, finding the cords as if on their own, and my heart pumped in bursts of energy. I lost myself in the feeling and rhythm, holding the notes out until I had to gasp for more breath.
This yearning inside screams for you to return.
I want to feel you beside me, holding me all night.
In the early hours, I know it’ll be all right.
I see you in my dreams hovering above.
The promise that you’ll have me and make me feel I’m yours.
If only I could function like a normal girl,
We could be great in the real world.
To have me, hold me, and love me once more.
My thumb caught the last string and the stress fled my body in a wondrous exodus, until I stood and found Drake standing behind me.
I lowered the guitar to the stand. The fresh scent of soap and his shampoo drew me closer. He opened his arms and I fell into them. Warmth wrapped around my body. The sounds of cars honking outside and the creaking of the old building faded until the only thing that mattered in this world was Drake.
I pressed my lips to his chest and my fingers fluttered along his belt to the front of his pants.
He grasped my wrists. “No. Don’t,” he panted, heaving for a moment. “I’ve never been so fucking turned on in my entire life. You touch me in a way I’ve never known, but I refuse to ruin this.”
I rested my head against his chest. It wasn’t promiscuous if I wanted to be with him and only him, was it? “We spent the night together, and I didn’t kill you in my sleep. That has to mean something. Maybe we can do this.”
“Trust me, someday I want to take you and not stop until we’re both spent. I don’t care if it’s here or in the middle of the damn park, but not our first time. I won’t be one of those guys that you fuck then run away from. I don’t want that. I want more.”
The heat covering my body turned to a shiver. “So, you’re saying no?”
He sighed. “That’s not what I’m saying at all. I want to be inside you so bad right now I think I’m going to die if I don’t have you.” He pulled me tight against him and I could tell from his need for yet another cold shower that he spoke the truth. “You’re the only thing I can think about since that first moment I met you in the restaurant. And that music. Your music. It gets to me. It’s like your voice is calling my body to you. You touch something inside me that I can’t explain. I feel alive for the first time in over a year, and it’s amazing. That’s why I won’t take you like this. I won’t be just another guy to you. I want to betheguy. The one that treats you the right way.”
I pulled from his embrace, a sense of shame filling me as if I’d just woken from a bender in a rundown building. Spinning to leave, I caught my foot on the guitar stand. I tripped, but he caught me. The sound echoed, startling me, and I shoved from his arms. “It’s fine. No big deal.”
“Scarlet, please don’t be mad. I just need to know we have more between us than physical attraction before we sleep together.”
I froze, a realization coming over me. “So, it’s not just about you taking it slow for me? You needmorebetween us?”
He sighed again. “I’m not explaining myself well. This is my fault. I came on to you, so there’s nothing for you to be embarrassed about.”
“I’m not embarrassed.” The prickling of heat along my skin said otherwise. Before he could stop me, I darted past him, but he followed me down the stage steps to the dance floor.
“Listen to me, please.” He grabbed my arm and warning bells sounded in my head, causing me to jerk from his arms.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to grab you. Just stop.” He raced in front of me, hands up in the air. “I’ve been with women.”
“Yes, we both know you were a super stud with a fancy car and bimbos were beating down your damn door. So go be with them if you want more.”
“You’re not being fair. I’ve only known you a short time.”
“Sometimes it only takes a look.” I spit his grandmother’s words back in his face. “What are you scared of, Drake? You make me confess all my dark secrets and claim you told me yours, but what’s really holding you back? And don’t use me as an excuse any longer.”
“I don’t know.” He raked his hand through his hair.
“You think I’m gonna deck you? Kick you in the groin? What?”
