Page 25

A delicious shiver travels through my body, and I kiss his smirking mouth, happy to finally have him alone.

The elevator comes to a stop, and the door opens with a cheerful ding. We reluctantly break apart.

I idly play with one of my dress straps while Noah digs through his wallet for the key and then lets us in.

I step inside, and it’s cold. Blissfully cold.

“I think they fixed the thermostat,” I say.

“Looks like it.” He turns to face me, sliding his hands into his trouser pockets.

He wants to touch me.

I want to touch him.

The line we said we wouldn’t cross is growing fainter each day. If Noah weren’t stubbornly loyal to his promise, the line would probably be gone. It’s like a challenge now—a test of strength.

He’s doing better than I am, but we’re not going to last much longer in this romantic, private hotel room.

“I’m going to get ready for bed,” I tell him after I grab a change of clothes. “I’ll be out in a bit.”

He nods, turning toward his suitcase.

I take my time washing my face and brushing my teeth. Then I examine my chignon, proud that it stayed in place all evening. After that, I file my fingernails. When I catch myself toying with the idea of repainting my toenails, I decide I need to quit stalling.

Noah has already changed, but he passes me when I leave the bathroom.

“I need to brush my teeth, and then I’ll be out,” he says.

Unsure what to do with myself, I go out to the balcony and look at the ocean. Noah booked the room for several more days, but I suspect our time in Miami is wrapping up.

Noah joins me a few minutes later. He stands behind me and loops his arms around my middle. Together, we watch the moonlight play on the waves.

It’s nice, comfortable.

“We should go to bed,” Noah says after a while.

“Okay,” I reluctantly agree.

We step back into the light of the hotel room and close the balcony door and drapes.

“Will you take out the pins?” I ask, turning so my back is facing him.

“Hold still.” One by one, he pulls the sedative-laced pins from my hair and places them in their case. “Do you want me to remove these other pins?”

“Do you mind?”

“No.” Understanding the assignment, Noah removes a bobby pin…and then kisses the back of my neck. Then another…and another kiss.

I close my eyes, enjoying the butterfly riot in my stomach. The man is driving me mad, but in the best way.

When he pulls out the last pin, the twist falls, unraveling until my hair is free. Noah runs his fingers through it. If I were a cat, I’d purr.

“Thank you,” I murmur, turning around to face him.

We contemplate each other for several long seconds. And then I’m reaching for him, and he’s reaching for me, and our mouths crash together in a kiss that’s been a long time coming.

It’s not careful. It’s not hesitant.

It’s everything.

“Five minutes,” he says, his voice gritty and low. “And then we’re going to bed like good vampires.”

“I’m not sure all those words belong in the same sentence.”

He chuckles, darkly amused. I cut the sound off with my mouth, not about to waste a second of our five minutes. I wrap my hands around his back to keep my balance, enjoying the way his rock-hard muscles feel under my exploratory touch.

Noah is so much bigger than I am…and I like it. He easily picks me up, holding me around the back of my thighs as he sits on the bed.

And then I’m on his lap, which has quickly become my favorite place to be.

Our hearts race, creating a synchronized rhythm. I can’t tell which is his and which is mine. When he gently nips my bottom lip, I gasp, dropping my head back, begging him to explore.

Noah kisses down my jaw, and then just underneath it. I dig my fingers into his shoulder, preparing myself. Another soft kiss to my throat. Then another.

And then…

I panic.

Noah immediately stops when I jerk back. Concern shadows his face, his frown making me want to scream.

What’s wrong with me?

“It’s okay,” he says gently.

Still breathing hard, I meet his eyes. It’s really not okay. It’s not okay at all.

“I want him out of my head,” I say vehemently, refusing to even say Ethan’s name out loud. “ Gone. ”

“I know.” Noah brings my hand to his lips and brushes a kiss over my knuckles. “But how about we work up to it slowly?”

My eyes follow his lips as he flips my hand over and kisses the inside of my wrist. Swallowing, I ask, “How do we do that?”

“Like this.” Noah presses another kiss to my skin, this one above my wrist.

Slowly, the panic subsides, giving way to pleasure. I hold my breath as his mouth moves over my arm. But all that air rushes from my lungs when he kisses the inside of my elbow.

He smiles. “Does it tickle?”

“A little.”

Noah continues up, taking his time and nearly driving me mad. He kisses my shoulder, grazing my skin ever so gently with his teeth. He moves my dress strap, kissing the skin it once protected, and then moves it back in place.

His lips travel the curve of my neck and then across my throat. He continues his path down my other arm, until he reaches my hand. I expect him to stop, but he kisses the inside of my palm and then the tips of each of my fingers.

I’m on fire—molten like the honey in his eyes.

And then my phone rings.