Page 71 of Ignition

Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, an invitation if I’d ever seen one.

Lightning crackled along my spine, igniting something reckless as I arched in and finally, finally kissed her.

A soft, tentative brush that drew a groan from deep in my chest. My mouth caught the little sigh she made—like she’d been dying for it, too—and swallowed it whole, lips coaxing hers, tugging on her bottom one. The one I ached to sink my teeth into.

My fingers trailed up from her wrist, drawing a slow line over her forearm as the kiss deepened. My tongue brushed hers tentatively, then hungrily, as though it couldn’t get enough.

She tasted of whiskey and something sweet, like sin wrapped in cinnamon—spicy, decadent, and far too easy to sink into.

The tip of her tongue grazed mine, while I wanted to devour her.

“Mmh—you’re freezing… you should head inside.” Her mouth brushed mine with every word, sending tingles down my spine.

“I’m warmer than I’ve ever been,” I rasped.

My fingers knotted into the soft, warm curls at her nape, before my mouth slanted on hers again, harder, more deliberate, and I kissed her like she was the first breath of air after nearly drowning.

Her free hand arrowed into my hair, and her lips caught my groan, an almost desperate sound I would’ve rather died than admit to.

Strangely, I didn’t give a shit right now.

“Nnghh—Josh…” she panted against my mouth.

The sound of my name like that bolted through me, chased by a heady dose of adrenaline and a sharp pull in my gut, amplified by every bold lick of her tongue against mine.

I released her wrist and snaked a hand under her open coat, finding her waist and dragging her closer, fingers curling into the soft, warm fabric, steadying her—or myself, I didn’t know. I itched to feel her bare skin, to drag out a gasp with my cold fingertips.

Fuck.

My body pressed against hers as I hummed on her mouth, before my lips slid away from hers and trailed a slow path down her jaw.

“We shouldn’t be doing this…”

Her fingers curled tighter in my hair.

“I know.” I sucked her earlobe into my mouth.

Her soft moan nearly buckled my knees.

“Josh…” she protested, though I wasn’t sure the sound she made could be called that.

I ignored it, brushed my lips over the shell of her ear, before pressing a kiss right below, one that drew her nails against my scalp. I tasted her skin, the rapid jolt of her pulse underneath, and my own blood ran hotter.

“Yeah?” I murmured, in the most condescending tone I could muster while my voice was utterly wrecked. Another kiss, lower, and she was biting her lip to smother another sound. Potentially another moan.

I wanted to hear more.

I wanted to pick her up and—

Shit.

“S-stop,” she whispered, head tipped back, breath coming in sharp little pants against my cheek.

Though every fibre of my body protested at the distance, my mouth eased up, and I pulled back to take her in: flushed cheeks, swollen lips, eyes half-lidded and glazed over with something that resembled raw want too much to be anything else.

A few tattered breaths sawed out of me.

My fingers stroked her scalp as I let my forehead rest against hers. She leaned into it, like a cat chasing a sunbeam, and a slow smile tugged at my lips.