by Nia Arthurs
But Kaz blinks and the confusion gives way to a pleased smile. “Morgan,” she murmurs. To my surprise, she rolls closer to me and cuddles into my chest, “I was afraid you wouldn’t be here.”
“Why wouldn’t I be here?”
“You strike me as the ‘leave a note’ type,” she murmurs, nuzzling my chest with her cheek.
I laugh, amazed that she’s cracking jokes at a time like this.
Her pleased smile warms my skin and her hug gets a little tighter. “I like it when you laugh.”
“You do?”
She nods.
The feel of her in my arms sends me to a place of utter contentment. Something this wrong shouldn’t feel this right.
Damn. What is she doing to me?
“Morgan.”
“Hm?” I keep caressing her arm.
Kaz pushes up on her elbows and looks down at me. Her curls spread voluminously around her head and bounce gently on her slim shoulders. Eyes half-lidded in sleep, she’s the picture of effortless seduction. “Do you know something?”
“What?” I drive my thumb against her jaw, unable to stop touching her.
She lets out a breath laced with pleasure. “You fell asleep.”
My body freezes.
She’s right.
After kissing her everywhere and riding out the storm that swept us both, I held her in my arms, her bare chest against mine and her heart pounding a soothing rhythm against my palm. I closed my eyes. I didn’t think I’d actually sleep though. Not without the pills.
“It’s been so long…” I murmur.
She strokes my chin. “You were so peaceful.” She smiles. “Until you started snoring.”
“I snore?”
“Just a little.”
Heat sears my cheeks. “Sorry.”
“No.” She pushes her palm into my chest. “It was…”
“Music to your ears?” I smirk.
“Cute.” She gives me a get real look. “It was quiet.”
“I see.”
“You were tired.” She cups my chin. “I knew it just from looking at you that you’ve been exhausted for a long time. And part of that is my fault.”
“Kaz…”
“I know how hard you’re working to get me home.”
I flinch. The thought of sending her away is a physical whip to the chest. She’s become such an integral part of my life and what happened last night threw open the flood gates of a future I never dreamed I’d consider again.
She’s leaving. This is only temporary.
Restlessness inches over me, crawling all over my body with the niggling reminder that I’m about to lose someone else.
Kaz senses my unease and strokes my arm, her voice quiet. “I’m not leaving yet.”
“Maybe,” I grumble.
Kaz smiles softly. “You know, last night, after you fell asleep, I just looked at you.” Her dark leg rubs against mine, making me tremble. “I watched you.” Her fingertips trace my eyebrows, smoothing out the furrows there. “Do you know that you frown when you sleep?”
I shake my head, melting beneath her sweet exploration.
She’s slowly weaving a spell around me. It’s so strong, so intense, that I begin to question my own scientific loyalties.
Maybe magic does exist.
Maybe Kaz is the woman who wields it.
“You scrunch your nose.” Her nails lightly rasp my nose and down to my lips. “It’s like you’re working out a problem even in your dreams.” She traces my mouth. “I found myself wishing that your nights wouldn’t be so bitter and that all your dreams would be sweet.”
I capture her wrist. “I don’t dream anymore.” Pressing a kiss to her wrist, I whisper, “But last night was the closest I’ve gotten.”
“Really?”
I nod.
“Oh, Morgan.” She sighs, snuggling up to me. “I’m sore but happy.”
I wrap my hands around her wrist and kiss each of her fingers.
She’s stealing my breath. My mind. My sanity.
Being with her chases the darkness and makes me want to forget about everything else.
I can’t get so entangled in her.
This is dangerous. Foolish.
But I can’t stop.
I’m just running.
I’m just diving.
Straight off a cliff and into her.
She smirks, closing her eyes in pure bliss. “By the way, you tore my clothes to shreds.”
“Should I buy you a whole new wardrobe?” I offer.
Her eyes pop open. “Really?”
I press a kiss to her temple. It’s not like I’m hurting for cash. I’ve got a nice job, a nest egg, and no one to spend it on.
Something about Kaz makes me want to take care of her, provide for her, give her the world. This world. My world.
I want to be there when all her dreams come true.
I want to be the man putting that shy smile on her face.
I don’t want to let you go.
The words knock around in my head. My heart too. And they might have hit the air, but she glances up and says right at that moment, “I want a waffle iron.”
“What?”
“Forget it.” She shakes her head with a sheepish smile. “I don’t need anything.”
I laugh at her expression. “I’ll order one tomorrow.”
“Mm.” She hikes her shoulders and throws her neck back like a woman dancing in the rain.
“What?”
“You’re laughing again. Have I mentioned how much I love hearing that?”
My arms mold tightly around her delicate frame.
I’m in awe of her. Drunk on her.
Hot, liquid, crazy for her.
And it’s never been clearer than right now.
“Something inside me lights up.” Her eyes fall to the bed and her thick lashes sweep over them as she makes a shy confession. “Something inside me wants to keep making you happy.”
Her words dissolve what little rational thought I have left.
I pull her lips to mine.
“You drive me crazy,” I whisper before I take her to heaven with my mouth.
She sips from my lips, tangles her tongue in mine, kisses me softly, then harder. She twists her head to shift the angle. Playful. Seductive. Torturous.
I roll her under me.
Leaning over, I lick her skin and run my fingers down her chest.
She arches her back. “Morgan, please…”
“What?”
“Don’t stop.” She shakes her head. “Don’t let me think.”
I give her what she wants, what she craves.
Licking, suckling and teasing, I send her straight into a frenzy of pleasure. Surging my body against hers, I drive every thought from her mind.
It’s not only for her sake, but for me too.
Although I know this will end, I realize that I’ll never get enough of her, never be satisfied.
She clings to my shoulders, her nails denting my flesh and it’s so damn good. I’ve never been this crazed or this desperate before. It’s like the more I envelope her, the more I want. The deeper I delve into her, the higher I want to go until I fill her everywhere, right up to her heart. Until I’m her everything.
Our bodies press tightly together until it feels like we were meant to be one. One body. One soul. Like the world shook and space tore apart just to lead this woman to me.
As our lips meld and our worlds crash, as Kaz moans my name against my mouth, I realize that I will never be able to walk away from her.
And that… is a problem.
24
Kaz
So much has changed so quickly. After my incredible night with Morgan and what just happened an hour ago, I’m… feeling a little dazed. Even more than I did when I was snatched from my world and tossed into another dimension.
I mindlessly scrape the scrambled eggs in the pan, worrying my bottom lip. My heart is tugging me in a new direction, but changing course
now scares the hell out of me.
Who am I if I’m not Miles’s fiancé?
It’s a question I thought I answered last night—I’m brighter, braver, bolder. Sure, I still have a lot to work on, but I like who I see in the mirror much more now than I did back at Brighton Academy.
The problem is… knowing that and doing something about it are vastly different. I just can’t see myself letting go of Miles completely, even if my entire soul yearns for Morgan.
A headache throbs, stealing the magical quality of the morning. I flick the stove off and pour the eggs into a plate. Since I can’t figure that problem out yet, I won’t think about it. I’ll focus on the present and let the future work itself out.
Change what you can. Accept what you can’t.
Right now, I’ll accept my feelings for Morgan and explore them to my heart’s content. After…
I’ll deal with the rest when it comes.
Setting the plates on the table, I sit across from Morgan as he checks something on his phone. He’s been quiet, but I can tell that whatever he’s doing is important because that little wrinkle is back between his brows.
“What is it?” I ask, twirling the fork in my mouth.
“Pavel. There’s an issue with the suppliers.”
“For the doorway?”
He nods. “I need to sort that out.”
“Are you leaving already?” I ask, a hint of disappointment in my tone.
He hears it and glances up with a smirk. “What are you doing today?”
“I have school and then…” I shrug. Now that I’m fired from the Roly Poly Moley, there’s not much on my schedule.
Morgan grabs his jacket. “I’ll pick you up after my meeting.”
“To do what?”
He walks over to me and plants a kiss on my lips. Pulling back he whispers, “Shopping.”
“I told you I don’t need clothes—”
“It’s for me.” He pauses. “I think it’s time I get new furniture.”
My heart skips a beat. “For the garage?”
“For my house.”
My breath gets caught in my throat.
The furniture at his place represents Grace. It’s her aesthetic, her presence in his house and in his life. If he’s ready to move that out and make room for something new…
“Are you sure you want me to go? You don’t want to do it by yourself?”
“I want you,” he says firmly, with not a hint of hesitation. “It has to be you.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re important to me,” he says. “Your opinion is important to me.”
Tears gather in my eyes.
This moment doesn’t feel real. Or deserved.
I’m used to being the one who stands in the corner, longing for my love to be returned. I’m the one who sits quietly until I’m summoned, who’s ignored until I’m needed, who pretends that accepting nothing is good enough.
“Are you crying?” He gently catches a tear on the pad of his thumb.
“I don’t know why I’m so emotional today,” I say with a shaky smile. “I can usually keep the ugly cry in.”
He slides his hands down my arm and rests my forehead against his. “You don’t have to hide anything when you’re with me. I want to see it all, Kaz. I want it all.”
He’s so sweet. So impossibly kind. I’m scared of messing this up, but intensely ready to dive in as far as I can go, even if I hit the bottom.
“Morgan.” His name is a reverent whisper on my lips and I yank him down to smother his lips in a long kiss.
The scent of our passion still lingers on his skin.
I want more.
Need more.
I’m insatiable.
He pulls away, a torn look on his face. “I have to go.”
“But you don’t want to.”
“No,” he growls.
I wrap my arms around him, clinging to him tightly. “What time will you pick me up?”
“I’m not sure.”
I play with the top button of his shirt and wrap one leg around his waist. “Will sorting out the supplies take one hour?”
He groans. “Woman…”
I buck my hips. “Half an hour?” Morgan rolls his head back, his eyes closed. I press a kiss there at the pulse throbbing in his neck. “Fifteen minutes…?”
“Come here.” He hefts me up and leads me back to the bed. Crawling over me, Morgan kisses me soundly.
I arch up, pressing my body as hard against him as I can.
I’ve never felt this treasured before. This obsessed. This devastated by a man.
It’s him.
It’s Morgan.
The way he touches me…
He doesn’t just kiss me, he savors. He devotes himself to me, dives into my pleasure, in every inch of my skin. He makes me feel like my tiny curves are the biggest handful in the world.
My fingers tug against his belt buckle but, before I can tear it off, his phone rings. Morgan’s sigh of annoyance is buried in my neck.
I drop my thighs from around his waist and push him slightly. “Go.”
“Now you’re chasing me?” He arches an eyebrow.
“He’ll keep calling.” I sit up and give him a sultry look. “Besides, we always have tonight.”
His lips twitch. “Is that an invitation?”
“Would you rather I beg?”
He arches an eyebrow, leaning in to kiss me again.
The phone shrieks, shattering the moment.
I button his shirt back. “Later.”
Pulling away from the bed with a hard sigh, Morgan answers the call. I blow him a kiss as he waves over his shoulder and saunters out of my apartment.
The door closes softly behind him.
Falling back, I sink into the mattress and dig my fingers in to the blankets that smell like Morgan. Like me. Like us.
How am I going to survive leaving this place, leaving Morgan?
You have to. Do you think he’ll want you to stay? You think you can ever replace Grace?
I push that thought to the back of my mind where I don’t have to deal with it.
Getting up, I shower and prepare for school. I still have a bit of time left and so I tidy up the place. As I dig beneath my clothes, I catch sight of my engagement ring.
The diamond sparkles in the morning light, calling me out with its splendor.
Guilt stirs in me. Quickly scooping it up, I open a drawer and shove the ring all the way at the back and run out of my apartment.
Time flies when I get to school.
I endure my lectures, doodling Morgan’s name in the edges of my notebook like a middle grader with her first crush.
Ashley calls me, but I’m in the middle of class so I let it go to voicemail.
As soon as my last class is over, I pull out my phone to call her back, but a familiar face halts my movements. Morgan standing at the base of the school building, waiting for me.
He’s changed into a simple Henley and jeans, but my goodness he looks just as scrumptious. The wind tosses his brown hair and the sun cuts itself against his sharp jawline with just a hint of stubble.
I remember running my fingers through his hair last night.
Holding on to those shoulders.
Trembling from the strength in those thighs…
He turns at that moment and sees me.
I tumble down the rest of the stairs, jumping into his arms. “What are you doing here?”
“I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
His simple words have my knees buckling. I cling to his shirt front to remain upright. How is it that, despite being sucked on and bent and consumed all night, I still ache for him?
Breathlessly, I croak, “How did you know where I’d be?”
“I called Ashley.” He nods to my vibrating phone. “She said she’d give you a heads-up.”
“She called, but…” Words seem to jumble in my head. Morgan’s green eyes are melting every thought. I’m drun
k on him. Crazily, desperately, intensely addicted to him.
He pulls something out from behind his back. Flowers.
They’re stunning and I’m blown away when he offers the bouquet to me.
“Morgan…” I gasp.
“I thought of you when I saw them.” He hooks his arm around my waist. “Ready to go?”
“This first.” I clamp my fingers over his shoulder, rise on the tips of my toes and plant a kiss on his lips. Keeping it quick because of the students moving around us, I pull back. “Thank you. They’re beautiful.”
“Not as beautiful as you.” He touches the tip of my nose and leans down so I don’t have to crane my neck all the way back to stare at him. “I forgot how small you are.”
“I’m not small. You’re just ridiculously tall.”
“Whatever you say.” He smirks and slips his sunshades back on. “Shorty.”
I loop my arm in his. “Are you insulting me?”
“Petite then.”
“I’m fun-sized. I accept no other terms.”
He laughs and the sound fills me up from the inside. It does things to me that I cannot act on in public. As a cool wind teases my curls, I inch closer to Morgan. This moment could not feel more warm and perfect.
“Did you get the parts you needed?” I ask in the car.
“No. It’ll take a couple more attempts to—” His phone rings.
I notice Pavel’s name flashing on the screen and I gesture for him to answer.
Morgan puts the phone on speaker. “Pavel?”
“I got the parts.”
Morgan’s jaw flexes. “You went back?”
“Yes.”
“You didn’t have to go to such trouble.”
“Why not?” Pavel’s voice turns firm. “Because you were half-hearted in your pitch?”
“What are you trying to say, Pavel?”
Tense silence stretches out between the men.
Weird.
“Hi, Pavel,” I harp cheerfully, wondering why Morgan’s gone into such a bad mood. “Working hard as always?”
“Little One! I have some good news.”
“Oh?” I bring my bouquet to my nose and inhale contentedly. “What’s that?”
“Now that we’ve got everything we need, we’re close to the end.”
“The end?” I glance at Morgan who’s staring straight ahead.
