Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
My jaw dropped when a bolt of energy darted from his fingertips toward the fireplace, making the logs jump and pop as the fire blazed higher. Stunned by this turn of events, I pinched the inside of my elbow and let out a little yelp. His nostrils flared, and a hint of red hit his cheeks. “Why did you hurt yourself?”
“I needed to make sure I hadn’t fallen and hit my head while wandering around, lost in the woods.” I bit my bottom lip. “It’s hard to believe you were really able to do that.”
“Tell me about it.” He let out a deep bark of laughter that held no humor. “I’m the one who’s a walking, talking electrical outlet, and it still took me almost killing someone to get how real my affliction is.”
Although Silas was big and rough around the edges, I couldn’t picture him hurting anyone, let alone killing someone. “There has to be more to the story.”
“There is,” he confirmed with an abrupt nod before telling me what transpired on Halloween two decades prior.
By the time he was done, I was leaning against his side, trying to comfort him after hearing the horror in his voice and seeing the guilt in his eyes. I pressed my hand against his bare chest, right over his heart, as I stared into his eyes. “You had no way of knowing you could hurt someone by touching them back then, and you’ve kept to yourself for twenty years so you wouldn’t hurt anyone else. You’re the furthest thing from a monster.”
He pulled me closer. “I’m glad you don’t see me as one. I couldn’t handle seeing fear in your pretty brown eyes when you look at me.”
My heart melted, and I gathered my courage to ask the question that had been bouncing around my brain during his explanation. “So you really haven’t touched a woman in twenty years?”
5
Silas
I couldn’t stop touching her, but I satisfied myself with a stroke of my finger over her soft skin here and there. It made me hard as fuck when she shivered in response, or there was a trail of goose bumps in my wake.
But when she asked how long it had been since I touched a woman, I paused and stared into her eyes as I shook my head. “No one.”
“Soo…” Her expression was uncertain and pink stained her cheeks. “You’re just touching me because I’m the first person who hasn’t been affected by your power?”
I was shocked by her question, even though I completely understood why she had made the assumption.
Cupping her hips, I raised her and set her on my lap, straddling my legs. Then I placed my palms on her cheeks and brought her face close to mine. “I haven’t touched a woman with anything other than familial affection since long before that night. I never wanted to.”
Closing the distance, I rubbed our noses together and smiled at the pink stain on her cheeks and the sweet upcurve of her lips. “When I saw you, I thought that fate had played the cruelest of tricks on me. The one woman who made me come alive for the first time in more than twenty fucking years was so close yet out of my reach.” I locked our eyes together, holding nothing back because I wasn’t going to waste time playing games. “I’m not sure I’ve ever responded to a woman like this, baby. And…I’m dying to kiss you.”
Juniper’s eyes sparked with desire, but she smiled shyly. “I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it,” she admitted softly. “I’ve never really been kissed before.”
My eyebrows lifted as I gaped at her in disbelief. Juniper was fucking gorgeous. It was hard to imagine that she didn’t have men falling all over themselves to get a taste of her. From spending what little time we’d had together, I had begun to suspect that she was innocent. But I’d been afraid that was just wishful thinking. “You’ve never been kissed?”
Pink bloomed on the apples of her cheeks, and she shook her head as she looked down at her lap. “Only a brief peck, and I don’t think that counts.” Her nose scrunched before she added, “Although, it’s the only type of kiss I’ve ever seen between my parents, so maybe it does.”
Jealousy and anger warred inside me. I wanted to hunt the jackass down and beat the shit out of him for getting even the smallest taste of her.
“Does that…um…change your mind?”
My eyes narrowed and with a single finger under her chin, I raised her head so I could fully see her beautiful face. “Does it feel like I’ve changed my mind?” With my free hand, I captured hers and pressed it onto the prominent bulge in my jeans. I was so fucking hard that my cock was about ready to burst through the zipper. Without the button done up, she’d soon be getting a clear eyeful of my big, long dick. I didn’t want to overwhelm her, though, so I released her hand.