Page 119 of The Broken Keys

Heat. Want. Something raw that makes my stomach flip.

“Why not?” I stand, closing the space between us. “You said we reconnected recently. So…?”

“Lily—”

“Are we together or not?” I stop a foot away from him.

His shoulders tense, and his breathing picks up when I move closer. The muscles of his chest flex as if he’s fighting himself.

“What’s the problem, Callum?”

His voice drops lower. “I’m trying to do the right thing.”

“Which is what? Keeping your distance?” I reach up, fingers grazing his arm. “Standing in doorways instead of coming inside?”

His hand catches mine. “You just got out of the hospital, Lily. You’re hurt and confused, and?—”

“And I want you.” My stomach spins and my insides fillwith warmth. “I love you, Callum. I want you and you’re acting like that’s wrong somehow.”

“It’s not wrong.” He closes his eyes like he’s in pain. “It’s just…”

“Just what?”

When he opens his eyes, the desire I glimpsed before has intensified. It’s right there in the blue depths, wanting me, fighting himself, and losing the battle with every second.

“Complicated,” he chokes out the word. “Everything about this is confusing.”

“Then let’s change that together.” I close the final inches between us. “Kiss me.”

“Lily—”

“Please.” My palm flattens against his chest, where his heart hammers. “Just kiss me and make me feel like something in my life still makes sense.”

His hands come up to frame my face. Gentle. Reverent. Like this is a moment he’s been waiting for.

“You don’t understand what you’re asking.” His forehead drops to mine. “If I kiss you right now?—”

“Then kiss me.” I rise on my toes. “Whatever you’re afraid of, we’ll figure it out…together. Isn’t that what you keep telling me?”

Something in him snaps. I see it happen: the second his control fractures and instinct takes over.

But I don’t wait for him to make the choice.

I kiss him first.

My lips find his, and everything else disappears. The house I don’t remember. The business I can’t recall building. The five years that vanished like smoke.

None of it matters.

Because this—his mouth on mine, his hands tightening in my hair, and the low sound that rumbles from his chest—this I know.

A shiver runs up my spine. My body remembers him.

I remember everything about him. The way he tastes. How he kisses like he’s been starving for it. The barely controlled strength in his grip that makes me feel protected and desired all at once.

He pulls back just enough to breathe. “Lily?—”

“Don’t.” I chase his mouth. “Don’t think. Don’t talk. Just feel.”