He tightened his arm around her shoulder and lifted her chin with his other hand until he could look deep into her eyes. “Do you know what I really think about you, Katie?”
Her eyes grew large and round. “No.”
“I think I like you.” He let his fingers slide along the edge of her delicate jaw, and her eyelids closed halfway.
“Gary, I don’t think this will work,” she whispered. “We’re too different.”
“Different can be a good thing. We’re not committing to a lifetime. Just one day at a time. That’s all we have, anyway.”
“What if I’m not good for you?”
“Trust me—you will be.”
But, will I be good for her?
Was he setting Katie up to be hurt again, like Steven had warned? Would he wound her as badly as Joseph had?
He brushed the pad of his thumb across her quivering lips, dying to taste her. He bent his head closer. Her face lifted toward him, lips parted, inviting.
Just one kiss… What can it hurt?
10
Katie held her breath so long, she thought she’d pass out. Was it actually going to happen this time? Thank goodness she’d brushed her teeth.
With her heart thumping hard and fast like the end of a long workout, her hand rose of its own accord to rest on the hard planes of his chest. His heart pounded against her fingers, in time with her own.
His face was so close she could feel his heat radiating to her skin. Still he held back, as if he thought she might be too fragile. She lifted her hand to his cheek, relishing the contrast of the masculine stubble along his jaw against her soft fingertips. As her fingers slid around the back of his neck, she drew him to her.
Their lips touched and time stopped. It felt as if they belonged together. Heat and energy pulsed from his contact. Tingles bubbled at the top of her spine and traveled like lightning to the tips of her curling toes.
His mouth moved on hers. Seeking. Hungry. With the ravenous press of his lips alone, he possessed her. And she was his. Completely. In that moment, the world disappeared, burned away in the scorching heat.
She knew in that instant, she’d gone over a cliff, from which there was no return. He was like a drug, and she was already addicted. Even now, she couldn’t get enough of him. He would be gone at the end of the week. And when he left, her oxygen supply would go with him. Her heart, budding to life for the first time, would shrivel and die.
But for now, he’d awakened a hunger she hadn’t known existed. As his hand gripped her shoulder, she moved closer, wanting to melt against him. Then his fingers tightened, his arm pushing back. His lips ripped their warmth away, leaving her empty… barren… desolate… mourning.
He stared at her with wide eyes, his chest rising and falling with rapid breaths. Locked in his penetrating blue gaze, her soul was laid open for his leisurely inspection.
“What was that?” His voice was barely above a whisper.
“A kiss,” she answered. “The best I’ve ever had. Let’s do it again.”
“No!” He scrambled backwards to the end of the couch, like she would at the sight of a spider. “If we start again, I won’t be able to stop.”
“Just one more?” she pleaded, moving closer, not caring that she sounded desperate.
“No.” His stiff arm blocked her way. “We’re not going to take this too fast and ruin everything before it has a chance.”
“What are we ruining? You said one day is all we have.”
She reached toward his neck, ready to rein him in, but he caught her wrists and brought them down, snared in hi
s unrelenting grasp.
“Katie, I know what I said a minute ago, but I changed my mind.”
Her heart began to tear, ripping open the old scar. She remembered when Joseph had stopped kissing her. At first, his formerly passionate kisses had grown shorter and less frequent. Then he would only linger for a short peck on her lips, progressing to a brotherly kiss on her cheek. Finally, he avoided physical contact altogether, claiming a headache or exhaustion. She’d assumed it was his way of keeping their relationship pure during an engagement that he’d extended, refusing to set a wedding date.