Chapter Eighteen

Not Passion, Not Desire, and Most Certainly Not Love

MILA

The second Mila removed the beanie, Riley’s emotions slammed into her like a tidal wave. His thoughts weren’t spelled out in coherent phrases she could hear or read, but they were strong enough to decipher easily.

He wanted her; he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. Mila grabbed onto his shoulders and let her thoughts flow unguarded, responding to his avalanche of raw emotions and desires with equal force.

She could tell the moment Riley felt it from the way he intensified the kiss, if that was even possible.

His hands traveled down to the small of her back, pressing her closer to him as they kissed with reckless abandon. Mila moaned softly against his lips as their electric chemistry, palpable and all-consuming, coursed through her body.

Riley’s deft fingers were drawing circles on the small of her back, causing every nerve ending on her body to feel so damn good it almost hurt. Mila responded eagerly, tangling her fingers into his hair and pulling him even closer until she could feel every single one of his hard muscles pressed against her. And it still wasn’t enough.

Riley must’ve come to the same conclusion because, with an animalistic growl, he pushed her backward until her back hit the wall. Then he was on her, caging her between the hard wall and his even harder body, and there was no more space left between them.

But even that didn’t last. Without a word, Riley scooped her up into his powerful arms and carried her down the hall to the bedroom, where he gently laid her on the bed. It looked like they were going to test the hard mattress after all.

The sheets were cool against what little skin her winter clothes left exposed. But as Riley climbed on top of her, the cool sheets became the last of her worries.

Mila arched her back to meet his body in mid-air as Riley’s mouth claimed hers once more, his hands roaming over her with a desperate hunger that left her trembling with need.

It was like they couldn’t get close enough to each other, like no matter how hard they pressed against each other, it’d never be enough. More, she needed, more. The craving was so powerful it almost felt wrong.

But then Riley kissed her neck. He sucked her earlobe, grazing it with just the right amount of teeth to send a shiver of pleasure coursing down her spine, and her recriminations almost melted away. Mila was about to let herself go completely, to forget about reason and just give in to her desire when Riley lifted his head and looked at her. And that’s when Mila recognized the speckles of silver in his eyes for what they really were. Not passion, not desire, and most certainly not love.

It was magic. Her magic.