Free Eminent Love by Leddy Harper Page A

and I did nothing but gape at her, our mouths falling open in awe and wonderment.
    I didn’t wait for her to say anything, nor did I allow Drea to make the first move. After long moments of motionless staring, I pulled myself from the couch and made my way to her. My feet stopped abruptly with about a foot of space between us. Electricity filled the air around our still bodies, my skin prickling with the heightened energy. And then her mouth opened, as if she was about to say something, but I didn’t give her the chance. Before she could utter the first sound, I wrapped my hand behind the back of her neck and pulled her to me, meeting her lips with mine.
    I poured my every thought into that kiss, letting her know without a doubt how I felt. I had no idea if she planned to leave the wig off for the remainder of the night, or if she only took it off for a few minutes, but it didn’t matter to me. She had removed it and then came back to us in the living room, a space where Colin could walk in at any moment. And that was all I needed. One step. Because one step could lead to two, and then to three.
    She had her arms around my waist, holding her body to mine as I hungrily attacked her lips. I didn’t want to let up, because then I’d have to share her with the others. And I did not want to share her. I wanted to steal her away, carry her into my bedroom where we could be alone, but I knew it would be wrong to do.
    Drea cleared her throat behind us—several times—and interrupted our amorous moment. We finally broke away, although we didn’t let go of each other. We stood with our faces inches apart, staring into the other’s eyes. My hands drifted from her face to her scalp. I ran my palms over her hair until she finally laughed and backed up.
    “I just spent like five minutes making it look good, and now you’re ruining it. I have to go fix it again.” Layne offered a teasing grin and rolled her eyes before heading back into my room.
    I glanced over my shoulder at Drea, silently seeking permission. She swept her hands in the air, as if shooing me off, telling me to go after her, and I couldn’t have been happier. I didn’t hesitate before chasing after Layne, meeting her in my bathroom.
    She stared at my reflection, but I couldn’t take my focus off the real version of her to find her gaze in the mirror. Time seemed to drag on before she finally turned to meet my eyes, reluctance rolling off her in waves.
    “You know you’re mine, right?” I asked in shallow breaths of airy words, sounding every bit as desperate as I felt on the inside. “You’re mine, as in there is no one else I’m seeing or even talking to. You know that?”
    “Yes.” She gave a slight nod, but continued to stare at me with a knitted brow and intense, questioning eyes.
    “And you know this is real for me, don’t you?”
    “Yes,” she repeated. “Where is this coming from?”
    I shook my head and allowed the consolation to fill me, to calm my racing heart. “Your sister…she asked what we were together. She said she’d asked you the same thing, but you didn’t know. I just want to make sure you know how I feel. I want you to know this isn’t some casual thing for me.”
    Layne gently settled her hand on my chest and cocked her head. “If I believed it was casual, or that you had someone else on the side, I wouldn’t be with you. I wouldn’t spend so much time with you or fall asleep in your bed.”
    I nodded, even though her response perpetuated the knot in my chest. “And you…” I cleared my throat, hoping to subdue the fear in my voice. “And you feel the same about me?” I hated how vulnerable I was, how desperate I sounded, but I couldn’t hide it. I couldn’t make it go away. I’d never felt this way before, so I had no idea how to conceal it.
    Her hand slid from my chest to my cheek, her bright eyes claiming mine. “I didn’t think you needed to hear it, but apparently you do. Creed, this is real for me.