12. Bodhi
12
BODHI
I must be out of my damn mind saying the words, but none of that seems to matter because the second that my gaze drops to her pretty pink lips, they part.
Like an invitation.
And I take it.
Bringing her face down to meet mine, I kiss her slow and deep and without hesitation.
Without apology.
Because she brought me back to myself, protected me from the darkness that had ruthlessly pulled me under. A darkness I couldn’t stop no matter how hard I tried.
I’d been at the mercy of my past, of the memories—braced for the unending rush of anguish and pain.
But she saved me.
Breathed air into my lungs with a sweetness I’d never get enough of and grounded me in this moment.
In the present.
And more than that, nothing in my life has ever felt this good…this indulgent. Her body is warm and soft and practically melted against mine.
And I need this…this connection.
This grounding to reality, both the beautiful one and the ugly one.
The ugly takes precedence and my head begins to throb.
“I need my migraine medicine in the back.”
“Oh! Of course,” she squeaks, her movements frantic as she tries to figure out how to climb off me.
“Ella,” I murmur, tightening my grip and bringing her attention back to me.
“Yes?” she says, a little breathless, her cheeks heating as she searches my gaze.
“Thank you.”
“Uh-huh.” The sound is sexy and breathy and really inconvenient with her nestled over my cock.
Doesn’t stop my lips from twitching for just a moment before I’m slammed back into reality. “The meds are probably gonna knock me out. I know we’re not as far as we need to be, but I’ll need dark and quiet and?—”
“I’ll find us a place.”
“Thanks for keeping us safe,” I tell her, my fingers absentmindedly drawing little circles on her back.
“Mm-hmm.”
“You okay?”
“Yes,” she says, clearly higher-pitched than she expected if the way she clears her throat is any indication. “Yes. But if you don’t let me off your lap, I’m going to kiss you again.” Those amber pools are full of interest and hesitation, and fuck, we shouldn’t but I want to.
“Do it.”
“You’re hurting.”
“Then let me indulge in a moment of reprieve.”
Seemingly satisfied, she doesn’t waste a second, taking my mouth in a bruising kiss, her nails dragging down my chest as she teases her tongue against mine.
Fuck, that feels good.
“We need to stop,” she murmurs, her hand fisted in my shirt. “You need medicine, and I need to find us a place to sleep.”
“I know.”
She kisses me again, the intensity ratcheting up, and I have the wildest urge to pull back and lick my way down the column of her throat, to taste her and capture every little noise that escapes her swollen lips.
She rocks against me and gasps before lifting herself off where my dick was hard between her legs.
Dammit.
“Sorry, I’m sorry I?—”
“Nope,” she pants as she shakes her head awkwardly so close to the roof. “I liked it… That’s the problem and we…this is not happening here. Not like this, and apparently, I’m the adult today.”
“Your sacrifice is noted,” I deadpan and she laughs, pushing my door open, maneuvering awkwardly, before getting both feet on the ground. She retrieves my bag from the back as I try to discreetly adjust myself before she rejoins me in the cab.
In the driver’s seat.
And unfortunately, not on my lap.
Fishing my meds from the side pocket, I down the pill dry before chasing it with a swig of water, my body both exhausted and rejuvenated from the last twenty minutes.
And I feel like I should say something…something more than thank you. But what is there to say? She saved my life, in more ways than one.
I want to reach up and touch the tips of my fingers to my lips, the feel of her still so real against me.
“I think there’s a motel up the road, maybe like twenty minutes, all right?”
“Yeah, sure,” I mumble, leaning back against the headrest and closing my eyes as she eases back into traffic. “Thanks.”