Synnr's Hope - Kate Rudolph Page 0,45

cradled her cheek, and then their mouths came together, tongues colliding as heat exploded around them. He wanted to devour her, wanted her taste on his tongue for the rest of time, and from the way she clutched at him she felt the same.

Her scent was all around him, mixed up with the feel of her and her sweet taste. How had he denied himself for so long? Why?

It was a vicious thing, this kiss, this affirmation that they’d both survived, even if the battle had been nothing more than a simulation.

His heart pounded madly and he felt its beat in his cock. He’d give his entire fortune to strip her naked right now and join with her, their bodies and sparks dancing together as they were meant to. They could be as close as two beings in the universe could be and still it wouldn’t be enough.

She moaned and it was almost too much. Her fingers dug into the back of his neck, holding him tight, and Solan loved the pressure, the relentless assault of her lips against his own.

They shifted and suddenly fell back until he was straddling her legs, holding her at his mercy beneath him. He could plunder her all night, do whatever he wanted. And from the desperate way she kissed him, he knew she’d allow it.

Madness.

He reared back and rolled off of her in one motion, backing up until half the room was between them. He reached up to wipe his mouth, but instead traced his lips with a finger.

Lena sat up slowly and stared at him for several seconds. One of them had to say something.

Silence.

More silence.

Finally, Lena scooped up her shirt and walked towards the bathroom. “I’m taking a shower. Hopefully no one attacks us for a while.”

LENA’S HAIR WAS STILL damp when she laid down, but she didn’t care. It allowed her to turn away from Solan as he headed for the bathroom. She was safe while the water ran; she didn’t have to face him after that humiliating rejection. She got it. He didn’t want a relationship. Easy enough.

So why did he kiss like he’d die without her?

She wasn’t going to consider that. She stole glances at the green light over the door, convinced it would shift to red if she looked away for too long. The computer lady hadn’t told her if there was a specified amount of green time. No doubt the house didn’t want them to get complacent.

Stupid murder house.

If they were lucky they’d be able to snatch a full night’s sleep. The sunlight streaming in through the window wouldn’t help with that, but Lena wasn’t getting up to pull down the blackout curtains. It would be hard to pretend to be asleep if Solan caught her out of bed.

She traced a finger over her lips and then jerked her hand away, cursing herself for the weakness. It had been a damn good kiss, flavored with adrenaline and an affirmation of life. She wanted to do it again, even though it would only lead to another rejection.

Stupid Solan and his stupid rules.

What was the point of having a soulmate if you couldn’t make out every once in a while?

The shower stopped and Lena squeezed her eyes shut, keeping her back fully towards the room so that hopefully Solan would think she was asleep. She heard him move around the room and, thankfully, he pulled down the blackout curtain before settling into his own bed.

Tension hung heavy in the air for two people that were supposed to be asleep.

Lena counted the seconds, hoping it would lull her into slumber, but it wasn’t doing the trick. Solan’s breathing was even, but not deep enough to suggest he’d started dozing.

This was ridiculous.

“Are you asleep?” she finally asked when she feared the tension would snap around them.

“No” was all he said.

They lapsed back into silence, their breaths the only sound in the room, the green light the only illumination.

“It happened. We’re adults. It doesn’t have to be a big deal.” The declaration burst out of Lena before she could think better of it. No, that wasn’t true. She’d been thinking of nothing but it from the moment she’d gotten off of her bed after she hadn’t gotten off.

“I didn’t say it was.” She could imagine the look on his face, brows drawn together in frustrated confusion. He didn’t know what to do with her, she’d figured that much out. She didn’t fit into the pieces of his exacting Synnr life.

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