Once Upon a Temptingly Ruinous Kiss - Bree Wolf Page 0,100

an alcove tucked away behind one.

Here, Leonora stopped, her face hidden from his eyes by the dark. Still, Drake felt her tremors and heard the rapid in and out of her breath.

This is where it had happened. He knew it beyond the shadow of a doubt, unable not to imagine what had happened here. How she had been attacked. How she had fought to free herself.

Outrage, murderous in its intensity, surged through his veins, and he knew that he needed to get away from this place, or before long he would lose control. When he tried to pull her away, though, back down the corridor, she dug in her heels and held him back.

What happened next happened in the blink of an eye, and for a long moment, Drake was not certain if he had simply lost his mind and allowed himself to be dragged into some kind of daydream.

One moment, Leonora had stood at his side, her arm slung around his, holding tight, and the next, he felt her hands sliding up his chest, snaking around his neck, her body swaying against his.

“Leo—?” was all he managed to utter before her lips closed over his.

Drake froze, shocked to his very core. For a moment, he could not move, his mind racing to make sense of what was happening. Yet, other parts of him responded with greater ease, and before he knew what he was doing, Drake was kissing her back.

His arms closed around her, pulling her tighter against him as they stumbled backwards. He felt her hands upon his face, tracing the line of his neck, her fingers slipping inside his collar. At first, she had seemed uncertain, hesitant in her kiss. But she did no longer.

Leonora pulled him toward her, sinking into his arms as he walked her backwards, his right hand outstretched until he felt the smooth, hard surface of the wall cut off their retreat. He leaned her against it, his hand settling upon her waist, holding her close, as he kissed her the way he had wanted to for far too long.

All thoughts of caution disappeared in the shadows as he felt her warmth, her responsiveness. There was no fear or apprehension in the way she reached for him, clung to him. For a moment, Drake allowed himself to believe that she wanted this as much as he did, forgetting about tomorrow.

All that mattered was her.

Here.

Now.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Kisses in the Dark

Leonora could not believe what she was doing. She certainly had not planned on it. Granted, she had wanted to kiss him again after her first experiment had shown such promising results. Although Leonora did not know why, Drake’s presence, his closeness, even his touch did not repulse her. She did not feel tense and uneasy around him as she did with others. Something about him was different. Something about him made her feel different.

When she had learned of his intentions to attend the Hamilton’s masquerade this year, Leonora had known in an instant that she too needed to go. She had known she needed to see the place again with open eyes, free of fear and terror. She needed to look upon it and see it as it was and not as she imagined it in her dreams.

Her plan had extended no farther than that.

Yet, when they had come to this spot, her memories of that night had returned full force. Leonora had not been prepared for the intensity of her emotions as her mind had carried her backwards in time. Again, she had felt her attacker’s hands upon her, his mouth pressed to hers. Everything within her had wanted to run in that moment, and then she had felt Drake’s presence beside her, remembered the steady feel of his arm under her hand.

Instantly, her fear had retreated, the memories of that night replaced by more recent ones. Beautiful ones. Tempting ones.

A deep need had awoken within Leonora. A need to feel good in this place of all places. This was where her darkest memories sprang from, and she needed them to yield, to disappear and leave her alone from this day forward.

And so, she had reached for Drake, knowing that he was the only one who could help her chase them away.

Her hands had felt his heartbeat as they had trailed upward. Then she had felt warm skin against her own, his pulse beating as fast as her own as she had pressed closer. Unable to see his face, Leonora had forced herself not