It Started with a Kiss

The smirk.

The deep-blue eyes.

And the little tousle of hair that’s fallen over his forehead.

Before I open the door, I playfully ask, “Who is it?” but also start unlocking the bolts in my excitement to see Jackson again.

“The Big Bad Wolf.”

I might have once said I didn’t believe in fairy tales. “My grandmother’s not home.” I swing the door wide open, and add, “But I am. Will I do?”

He eyes me from head to toe and back again, his tongue dipping out to wet his lower lip. I hold the door a little firmer as the sight of that tongue teasing me has my legs weakening under me.

“You’ll more than do, Marché.” Rushing in, he takes me by the waist and lifts me into the air. I wrap my legs around his waist and secure my arms around his neck. Our lips crash together, and then he pins me to the wall. A harsh breath is sucked in before a wry grin appears. “Why do you have to be so damn tempting?”

I lick my lips and find myself taking a deeper breath—the heat, the proximity, the man. I gulp and then shake my head. “I don’t know what to say to that, Jackson.”

He cups my cheek. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything. You just have to—”

“Kiss me.”

Our mouths come together again in a flood of passion as his need presses hard against me. I tighten myself around him, wanting to feel this again, needing him, and wanting all of this, all of us again like we’ve always been.

When our lips part, Jackson dips his head to the side with my body, and whole being, still safe in his arms. He says, “You always did have the prettiest eyes.”

I get compliments on my looks all the time. So I’m not sure why my cheeks are suddenly heating under his gaze other than this compliment feels different coming from him. It’s as if he’s always felt this way but never shared before.

“Thank you,” I whisper, not having to pretend to act shy at all. I feel it for the first time, making me realize it matters what he thinks of me.

Kissing the corner of my mouth and then the middle of my lips, he has me melting between him and the wall, and then kissing him right back. Seconds pass before our mouths open, and our tongues begin to tangle again. He moves to my neck, leaving a surge of goose bumps in the wake.

His jaw is rough to the touch of my lips, but I kiss him, dragging myself across him to feel the burn of our connection. Pushing the tip of my nose against the shell of his ear, I whisper, “Why are we still out here when we could be in the bedroom?”

“I’m starting to think you only want me for my body.”

“Is that a problem?” I grin and bat my eyelashes.

A rogue grin glides into place. “Fuck no, it’s not.” He kisses my neck, and when I tilt back to give him more access, he kisses along my jaw. “I need to tell you something, though.” He slides his tongue over my skin and then blows, causing pebbles to rise in reaction.

“Yes,” I reply through unrestrained breaths.

“I’m going to keep kissing you. Now that I’ve had a taste, there’s no way I’m going back.”

“I’d already thrown that rule out the window.” I tighten my hold around him but smile because—Gah—he’s amazing. Not just his mouth, though that’s pretty magical, but the whole man. “Because I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

We’ve already crossed so many boundaries that there are no assets left to protect, except for maybe our hearts. But who cares when I have this incredible man carrying me into the bedroom?

He tosses me on the bed, leaving me laughing while he tugs his shirt off over his head. Kicking off his shoes, he starts on his dress pants.

“In a hurry there, cowboy?” I ask, propped up on my elbows and shamelessly watching him undress.

“Abso-fucking-lutely. I’ve been thinking about you all night,” he replies with a wink.

“Flattery will get you everywhere.”

“Good.” His pants drop to the floor, and he rips off his socks. Crawling over me on the bed, he kisses my mouth once more, and says, “Because I plan to be everywhere on this body of yours.” Kissing my temple, he whispers, “Even in your head. My name is all you’ll remember when I’m through with you tonight.”

My body shivers under his delicious threat, and I press my palm flat against his chest. No strength is needed when I push him to his back. He goes willingly and then holds me by the hips when I mount him.

With his hand slipping into my hair at the back of my head, he brings me down for another kiss that deepens quickly. My lids are closed as I begin a sweet surrender to him. But then he tilts me to the side and starts on my neck again. “Why are you still dressed?”