Seduced by a Shifter(21)

She lifted off her own headgear and rose on shaky legs. “Oh.”

Ben steadied her, caught her close, one arm around her shoulders, the other at her waist. “Sorry. I should have warned you.”

His face filled her vision. “N-no problem.”

He brushed her hair off her face. Conscious that she no doubt had helmet hair, she raised her own hand to run it through for some lift. “It’s probably all flat.”

Evidently Ben didn’t agree. He bit off his glove and threaded the silky strands through his bare fingers. “It’s beautiful. Like a warm, welcoming fire. So many glowing colors.”

Willow’s cheeks flushed. She loved her hair and always thought it her best feature. Now, looking into Ben’s appreciative gaze, she wished she hadn’t cut it so short. “It used to be longer, but then I usually had it in a bun or braid.” Good, Willow. Because that sounds so sexy.

“It suits you.” His fingers whispered over her hair, drifted light as a feather down over her cheek, her jaw. Her lips. “As do these.”

Her breath hitched. “Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah.” He closed the distance until their breath mingled. “I’m going to kiss you now, Will.” He hesitated, his lips less than an inch away, as if giving her time to tell him no. Only she didn’t.

Ben lowered his head that final fraction and pressed his lips to hers, her face still cradled in his hand. He sipped her, slowly, softly. The unexpected gentleness floored her, and warmed her. She let out a soft sigh and dropped the helmet to lay both hands on his chest.

He opened his lips slightly, caressing them over hers before closing them again, drawing her bottom lip in for a gentle suckle. Widening again, he tickled the seam of her mouth with his tongue. Another throaty sound escaped, giving her a nanosecond of embarrassment at the neediness of it.

Ben raised his head slightly, his tongue a moist caress along her lips. “Open up, Will,” he murmured. “Let me in.”

Her lips slowly opened and with a growl of approval, Ben’s tongue slid in, dancing over the slick inner lining of her lips, slipped further into her mouth. His taste burst in her throat, her head. Better, richer than the double cream Oreo cookie ice cream Jade had introduced her to. More addictive than she could have ever imagined. Then he angled his head, sealed his lips tighter against hers, and, with another growl, this one fierce and demanding, proceeded to devour her.

Willow slid her arms up his chest and twined them around his neck, all but crawling into his skin. She lifted her tongue and met his in a lusty duel.

Somewhere along the way Ben lost his other glove because she felt a warm bare hand slip under the hem of her sweater to spread wide across her back, the one on her cheek sliding to clasp the nape of her neck. She wrenched her own gloves off so she could dive in and fist his hair, rising on tiptoes to meet him, kiss for kiss, heat for heat, need for need.

She let out a moan of protest that turned to a sigh of delight when his mouth left hers to trail sweet, open-mouthed kisses along the long column of her neck. “I love your scent, Will.” Ben breathed deeply, tendrils of desire rooting deep with each press of his lips, each erotic flick of his tongue. “It makes me crazed for a taste of you.”

A careful little nip of his teeth followed, right at the base of her neck, sending a shiver of pleasure down her spine. “Yes,” she whispered, lost to the sensations bombarding her.

His groan coincided with the flexing of his fingers on her back. “You shouldn’t do that.”

“Do what?”

“Entice me.” He lifted his head, eyes blazing, a strange ring of amber barely discernible against the natural color that so enthralled her.

Her lids lowered, not in shyness but in sheer hunger. “But I want you to.”

A hungry growl left his lips, then he was kissing her again, this time his male dominance in full effect. He plundered and took, thrusting his tongue deep. Willow tried to keep up, tried to match him stroke for stroke, but she was starting to weaken, her knees shaking from the onslaught of his touch, his passionate kisses.

Suddenly he jerked away, a harsh curse filling the air. Dizzy from desire, she blindly followed his retreat, knowing only she wanted more of his lips, more of his hard body pressed to hers.

“I gotta take this, sweetheart.” Ben murmured, lips brushing her forehead. “It’s the emergency number.” Belatedly she heard the ringing of a phone and he removed the hand at her back to answer it. The one on her nape remained, coaxing her to lay her head in the crook of his neck.

“Anderson,” he said into the phone, his fingers gently kneading her scalp, easing her down from the shaking want that had all but consumed her. While she silently mourned the loss of his intense focus, she used the few minutes to gather her wits.