Chapter 14 - The First Kiss|
"Say that again," Raymond growled softly, his hands moving from her knuckles up to frame her face, his thumb gently tracing her cheekbone.
"I don't want to walk away, Raymond," Naomi repeated, her voice steady, clear, and filled with a quiet strength that made his heart leap. "I spent two years mourning a man who left me buried in debt. I spent six years hiding behind scrubs and night shifts. I'm tired of hiding."
Raymond let out a low, rough growl against her mouth, leaning down and pulling her into his arms.
His lips claimed hers with a fierce, desperate passion that had been building for ten years.
It wasn't a gentle, timid kiss. It was deep, dark, and possessive—a hard, commanding seal that bound their lives together under the bright autumn sun. Naomi gasped into his mouth, her hands sliding up his broad chest, her fingers tangling into his short dark hair, pulling him closer.
The scent of dark rain, expensive leather, and warm cedar filled her senses, erasing every doubt, every fear, and every shadow of her past.
Raymond lifted her slightly off the stone floorboards, holding her small body against his broad frame as if she were made of pure gold.
When he finally broke the kiss, both of them were panting for air, their foreheads resting together under the blue sky.
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"You're mine now, Naomi," Raymond murmured against her lips, his hands supporting her back with fierce tenderness. "You stay beside me."
"I stay beside you," she whispered, a radiant smile breaking across her face for the first time in years.
