Page 19 of Ice Around the Edges

I shrugged, but my eyes never left him. “I mean I didn’t fight for you. I just got up on my high horse and was like, if I’m not good enough for him, then fuck him.”

His eyes were locked on mine.

“I could have fought with you, for you… I could have made you let me talk to your father, and everything would have been cleared up ten years ago instead of us losing so––” His sharp intake of breath cut me off. “What?”

He cleared his throat. “You were saying that we lost a lot of time, and so that means that maybe you want that time back, and if you do want that time back, then maybe you want some time now.”

“Your mind is really scary.”

“Yes, I know.”

“You think just because it’s Christmas that I’m gonna be overly sentimental.”

“Where I’m concerned, I would be really pissed if you weren’t at least a little sentimental.”

I nodded before leaning in close to him.

“Quit,” he warned me. I kissed where his jaw muscle was flexing. “You need to stop.” He tried to smile, shifting to get up.

“No.”

“Evan.”

I reached for him, my hand slipping behind his neck as I drew him toward me. I kissed him slowly, and I heard his breath flutter before I parted his lips with my tongue, slipping it inside his mouth. The moan was full of agony, and I smiled as I leaned back to look at him.

“You’re trying to kill me.”

I took his face in my hands and pulled him back to me. I kissed him with everything I had. He had to know how much I both wanted and needed him, at least for the moment.

“What?” I asked him after ending the kiss.

“You gotta quit.”

I leaned in and kissed him again, long and hard and heated with more of my tongue. Finally I let him go, but only when he was panting for air.

He took a deep breath, his face flushed, his breath catching, his bottom lip trembling. “You listen really well, Kano.”

I smiled lazily, the effect I had on him obvious. “Yes, I know.”

“Christ.”

“What?”

“I crave you like a drug,” he said matter-of-factly, and I noticed that he didn’t look at all happy about it. “I have since I was nineteen fuckin’ years old, and it hasn’t changed one little bit. What the fuck is that?”

I chuckled.

“Baby, please.” He looked like he was in pain. “Just lay down and––”

“Shut up.” I grabbed a handful of the long sleeved T-shirt he was wearing. “Take this off.”

He just stared at me.

“You want me to beg?” I asked him, stroking his throat with the back of my fingers.

He pulled it off roughly and threw it on the floor.

“Lay down.”