Page 79 of Edge of Stars

It makes no sense to ask where his finale, and his voice, have run off to. I already take a well-educated guess once Kara and Kell hit the midpoint landing in the staircase. I follow the lively little thumps, already thinking the last hour has been long enough to be away from the other half of my soul.

But apparently not the remaining parts of my voice.

My volume…as depleted as Jesse’s.

My air…as nonexistent as every thought in my head.

My strength…willingly surrendered to the glorious female before me.

I didn’t think she’d entrance me more than the moment she appeared at the end of that aisle in the cliffside church, with that gown of mermaid crystals, that veil of diamond stars, and the promise of my every tomorrow in her huge and magnificent eyes. But now…

This feels like more than tomorrow.

Because it’s just today.

Just right now.

This complete moment, flowing into the next, which feels even better than the one before it. We grasp them all with everything we have, which turns them into bigger, brighter treasures.

Like the gift of her reaching out for me, an impish smile kicking at one side of her lips, more stunning than the ornate Valari earrings on her lobes. How those things have survived through the last day and a half is beyond my comprehension. Like her, their shine seems more enhanced now, even without the matching gemstone headband and the crystal-studded flowers. Perhaps because of that.

Nothing is getting in the way of her beauty anymore.

My clutching vocal cords are still attesting to that.

“Well, good evening, Professor Kane.”

With a gritted gulp, I beat my throat into enough submission to croak something back. It might even make some sense.

“It is…a good evening, Mrs. Kane.”

Her eyes slide shut for a moment. The thick fans of her lashes send my gaze down the fitted V of her long-fitted dress. There’s no jewelry gracing her neck and torso, but the bold white lace pattern doesn’t need it. Ironically, this gown is cut lower but shows less cleavage than the high-necked organza of her LA look. It’s demure but damnably sexy.

Who am I kidding?

Sexy?

As soon as she takes in my greeting with those closed eyes and parted lips, it’s nothing short of erotic.

“Oh, God,” she rasps, nearly for my ears alone. “I want to hear you say that, again and again and again.”

I switch the angle of our handclasp until I’m pulling her arms around me. Until I’m bending in and she’s tilting back and there’s only inches left before I’m through with merely ogling her and I’m sealing the deal on conquering her.

Again and again and again…

Mrs. Maximus Kane…

Her lips taste like a little Retsina and a lot of desire. Her skin, completely exposed by the gown’s back, is like a swatch of dark cream and sun-warmed satin.

And her pulse, throbbing against the place where I brace the curve of her neck, feels like home.

Until a pair of amused coughs break in, reminding us that tonight isn’t for pizza, Netflix, and chill.

Damn it. Far from it.

“Well, kids. I’d usually grab some popcorn and tell you go for it all about now, but there are twenty waiters outside just waiting to make sure my dakos and tzatziki quotas are filled for this trip.”

Kell’s gibe is a perfect representation for her look: a burgundy-red pantsuit with attitude to spare. But dragging my lips away from her sister and reacquainting myself with the sight is a rougher journey than expected. I was so busy dropping my jaw at Kara’s romantic elegance that I missed the tight waist nip of Kell’s jacket—and the cleavage gap that ends in about the same place.