Page 84 of Daisy

"Yeah, he's got a big mouth. But he's not wrong."

"So it's true?" Her voice is soft, breathy, and I can smell the faint spike of need beneath her honeysuckle scent.

I could lie. Pretend I've got experience I don't have. But she's been lied to enough for ten lifetimes.

"Yeah," I admit. "It's true."

"Why?" The question is soft, genuinely curious.

I think about how to explain without sounding like a complete loser. "Never felt right with anyone else. Never wanted to waste it on someone who didn't matter."

"And now?"

The hope in her voice makes my chest tight and my cock harder. Her scent is getting sweeter by the second, and I can feel my control starting to fray. "Now I'm standing here with the only person I want to kiss."

Her scent spikes with something sweet and warm—want mixed with nerves and the faintest hint of slick despite those damn suppressants. My alpha rumbles with satisfaction at the response.

"I've never been kissed either," she says, and the admission surprises me. I thought maybe she and Dante had shared a kiss during whatever happened between them in that bathroom towns ago. But if she hasn't... "But I want you to be my first kiss." Her voice gets stronger, more sure, and there's something almost excited in her eyes knowing we'll both be experiencing this for the first time. "If you want that too."

Want it? I've been dreaming about kissing her for two weeks straight. About being gentle enough not to scare her, being worthy of the trust she's slowly giving us. About the sounds she might make, the way she might taste.

"Are you sure?" I ask, because I need to hear her say it again. Because once I touch her, I'm not sure I'll be able to stop. "Because once we do this..."

"Everything changes," she finishes, and now there's no hesitation in her voice at all. "I know. I want it to change. I want to choose this. I want to choose you."

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. This incredible girl is choosing me. Trusting me with something she's never given anyone.

I reach down slowly, giving her time to change her mind. When she doesn't, I cup her face in my hands. Her skin is soft and cold from the wind, and I can feel her pulse racing under my thumbs. The simple contact makes my heart race, and I have to fight not to pull her closer.

Her scent wraps around me like silk, honeysuckle and vanilla and pure omega want. My alpha purrs with satisfaction, a sound I've never made before rumbling up from my chest.

Her eyes go wide at the sound. "What was that?"

"Purring," I tell her, and I'm honestly as surprised as she is. "I've never done it before."

"Never?"

"Never had a reason to." I stroke her cheek with my thumb, and the purr gets stronger. "It's all for you."

The wonder in her expression makes my chest tight with emotion.

"You deserve to be kissed like you're precious," I tell her, my voice rougher than I meant. "Like you're chosen."

"I am choosing," she whispers. "I'm choosing you."

When I lean down to kiss her, the rest of the world just... disappears. The cold, the uncertainty, the fear that's been chasing us for weeks. There's only Daisy, soft and warm and willing in my arms.

Her lips are perfect against mine. Hesitant at first, then more sure as I kiss her gently. I taste honey from her tea, smell the way her scent sweetens with want. She melts into me, and I can feel the exact moment her body responds—the way she presses closer, the sweet spike of slick I can smell even through her suppressants.

The purr in my chest gets stronger, vibrating through both of us. She makes a small sound against my mouth, almost a whimper, and my control nearly snaps. My alpha wants to deepen the kiss, to claim and mark and show her exactly how much she means to me. My cock is rock hard now, straining against my jeans, and my knot threatens to swell just from kissing her.

But this is her first kiss. Our first kiss. It should be perfect and soft and everything she deserves.

When we finally break apart, she's breathing hard. Her cheeks are flushed, her eyes bright with wonder, and I can smell her heat spiking. The scent makes my knot pulse with interest, and I have to step back slightly to keep from pressing my obvious erection against her.

"That was perfect," she breathes. "Absolutely perfect."

"Good." I rest my forehead against hers, breathing in her scent. The purr in my chest hasn't stopped. "You deserved a perfect first kiss, sweetheart."