Chapter 6
Chapter Six
I intend the kiss to be quick. Just a simple peck to express my gratitude.
But the moment our mouths connect, Jack stiffens. His gloved hands rise to my waist and hover, as if he’s warring with himself over how to respond.
As if he intends to push me away at any second.
Except...he doesn’t push me away, and he feels good. Surprisingly so. His lips are warm and plush, molding to mine in a way that wakens my spent nerves.
A whole second sneaks by. Then another. And while Jack doesn’t open his mouth, his stiffness yields a degree. Almost like a welcome. And Fortuna, how I’ve longed to feel a man’s mouth on mine again. After Theodore, I tried so hard to hold out for the one I wanted. I hoped and hoped and hoped. But this small touch, this moment of connection, amounts to more than Weston was willing to give me.
Jack’s posture softens. An unfamiliar heat spins into me, clouding my thoughts, and I forget to pull back .
And then something...happens.
Jack’s hands settle around my waist, his thumbs clamping against my ribs. Then his hesitation shatters, all at once. He slants his head and pulls me flush against his body. The hard planes of his chest crush the air from my lungs.
And he kisses me. Really kisses me.
And...
Oh.
Sweet Fortuna. He does it incredibly well.
My body lights up, new pathways igniting along every nerve. My stomach tilts, tipping me toward some fiery precipice I didn’t even know existed.
Jack makes a noise deep in his chest. It’s not a moan or a groan, but something greater. Something starved. It’s a miles-long yearning, compressed into sound.
That, more than anything else, makes me come undone.
Logic deserts me. I don’t pause to watch it go. Our exchange turns ravenous, Jack’s tongue parting my lips and plunging inside. He maps my mouth as his hand rises to cradle the back of my head, and the searing heat of it pulls me up on tiptoes. I fist my hands in the softness of his shirt, trying to anchor myself, but I’m lost. Adrift in the satin thrust of his tongue.
Instinct demands I press the length of my body to his. Jack responds by walking me backward until the backs of my knees meet the plush carriage bench. Then he’s lowering me, his solid weight settling against me, one hand pillowed beneath my head as the other skims down my body. I hoist my legs up around his hips. A hungry rumble tears from his chest as he deepens the kiss, and I answer with the wanton moan climbing from my throat .
My skirts ride up. Our position is downright indecent, but it doesn’t matter, absolutely nothing matters except the way this man kisses. It’s like a storm is breaking inside him. Like we’re falling into a bottomless abyss and I have no desire to resurface.
It’s like he actually wants me.
I shudder, arching against the delicious friction of his hips grinding into mine. Goddess help me, I’ve never been kissed like this. Not by Theodore, not by anyone. I’ve only ever experienced anything this unchecked in my most private, aching dreams.
Then I feel it. What begins as a tingle in my tongue spreads outward, a hum that sets my nerves abuzz. At first, the sensation blends with the layers of intensity detonating inside me. Except this part…this is familiar.
I’ve felt it before.
My eyes pop open. Jack must notice something amiss, too, because his lashes whip apart. His mouth releases mine, all at once, and he rears back an inch.
Energy crackles as our lips part.
Silence crowds the carriage. My chest rises and falls. His does, too, his breath no more than a ragged tumult. His enormous body molds to mine in a way that lets me know he is very, very turned-on by this.
“Shit,” he says. Shadows lance across his face, but I can still track his gaze as it races over my skin. But we aren’t touching anymore, not with all this black fabric in the way.
I unwrap my arms from his broad back—slowly, so as not to spook him—and slide my hands into the scant inches between us. His shirt laces at the neck, so I ease the tie through the eyelets and pull the thing open .
Then I stare. Stare some more. There’s just enough light left to confirm.
My eyes lift to his. Our gusted exhales entwine.
“You’re a Null,” I say.