When Stars Collide (Light in the Dark 2)

“Hi,” I say politely to the new lady manning the front desk. “I’m Prue’s new owner. I just wanted to drop this off since they said she’d have to stay the night.”

She takes the bear. “I’ll make sure she gets this.”

“Is she doing okay?” I ask.

She nods. “She’s sleeping, but doing fine. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Thanks.” I tap my finger against the counter before heading back to the car. I know it might seem silly, since twenty-four hours ago I didn’t even know this dog, but I already care about her.

I slide into the car and Thea smiles at me. For a moment, my heart stops because this girl … this girl owns me. Heart, body, and soul, I’m hers and she doesn’t even know it.

“Home?” she asks.

“Home,” I echo.

I know she’s talking about a place, but I’m talking about her.

I collapse into bed, exhausted. I haven’t done much today so there’s no real explanation for my exhaustion. I’m still marveling at the fact that we have a dog now. I couldn’t even keep my hamster alive when I was ten—poor Brownie, may he rest in peace—so I doubt I can do much better with a dog. Hopefully, Xander will be better at it than me.

I roll onto my side and smile at the moon shining through the window and the bright stars beyond.

When I was little, I was obsessed with stars. I thought if I grew tall enough I could reach up and grab them, but it didn’t take long for me to learn that the stars would always be unattainable. Sometimes, the greatest things in life are only meant to be seen and not obtained because once you have something it’s no longer as powerful to you.

The door to the adjoining bathroom cracks open and Xander steps into my room. My breath catches and I think maybe I was wrong, because right now I have Xander and he still holds just as much power over me as he did before.

“Scoot over,” he whispers into the dark.

I slide to the other side of the bed and he dives under the covers. The bed bounces and I laugh softly as I roll closer to him and basically land on top of him. I start to pull away but he reaches up, touching his fingers to my cheek.

“I love it when you laugh,” he murmurs. “I love it even more when you’re laughing because of me.”

Before I can blink, he closes the distance between us and presses his lips to mine. The kiss starts out soft, hardly the hottest kiss on the planet, but soon it’s like a match has been struck and we become an inferno.

My palms press against his bare chest as I try to get closer—like I wish I could claw my way inside and sink down into him. One of his hands fists in my hair and the other settles on my waist, dangerously close to my butt. I move so I’m straddling him and he sits up, the movement pressing me more firmly against him and he growls lowly. My heart speeds up at the sound. I love that I unravel him in a way I’ve never seen him come undone before.

His hand on my waist tightens to a bruising pressure, but I don’t mind. My hands move up his chest and wrap around his neck. He nips at my bottom lip and I moan.

We’re playing with fire, straddling a dangerous line of getting caught before we figure our shit out, but I can’t seem to stop this. I don’t want to stop this. I’ve been denying myself what I want for years, trying to save other people’s feelings, but I’m done with that because what I want is important too and I want Xander in a way I’ve never wanted another person before. It’s always been him, and while getting married wasn’t in my plans, it might not be the worst thing that’s ever happened—not that I’m going to tell him that.

He moves suddenly so my back is pressed into the bed and he hovers above me. I arch up, missing the feel of his body pressed to mine, and he obliges by lowering so we’re flush. I nearly sigh in relief and wrap my legs around his waist. He groans and his hands slide up my shirt, little by little, until he finds my breasts. I’m not wearing a bra and he makes a sound of approval, deepening the kiss. He cups my breasts, and even though they’re not the largest in the world, he doesn’t seem to mind.

He breaks the kiss long enough to tear my shirt off and then his lips are back. This kiss is unlike any other I’ve ever had. It’s like we’re dancing to a song that only the two of us know. His thumb rubs against my nipple and my hips buck.

“Xander,” I moan into his mouth, but the word is barely distinguishable as English. “Please,” I beg, but I don’t really know what I’m begging for.

He kisses down my neck, between my breasts, and over my stomach.

When he reaches the area above my sleep shorts, he presses one last kiss and then looks at me with heated eyes.

My heart sounds like thunder in my ears, drowning out my thoughts.

I can see Xander warring with himself, with whether or not he should stop, and frankly, I don’t know what I want him to do. The rational part of my brain screams that we shouldn’t do this, but fuck it, I want to.

“Thea,” he whispers and he sounds pained. I think maybe he wants me to stop him, but I can’t. I can’t find the words, because my throat is clogged with everything I want and don’t want to say.

He moves back up my body and kisses me deeply, branding himself on my soul. My fingers wind into his hair and I tug on the dark strands.

His hand ghosts over my stomach and slips beneath my shorts. I gasp and then bite his lip as he slips a finger inside me. I clench around him and I’m pretty sure I whimper.