Mack laughed again. “You’re so conceited.”
Kayla cocked her hip and gave her a fake pouty look. “Are you saying I’m not a good kisser?”
Mack went still for a moment, then closed the gap between them. Her gaze drifted down to Kayla’s lips. Suddenly, the oxygen was gone again. There was such hunger in Mack’s eyes. The spark between them that she had felt on the balcony that day lit again and surged into a bonfire. The power of it was undeniable, and Kayla’s knees went weak.
Fortunately, Mack kept her from falling. She reached out and ran her thumb across Kayla’s jaw. The motion subtly shifted the angle of her face, allowing Mack to cup her head beneath her ear. Mack lowered her face achingly slow. So slowly that, by the time their lips met, Kayla wanted to scream with frustration and need.
Had she thought the need would be sated by a kiss? God, was she wrong. Mack settled them into a slow, blazing kiss. At first, Kayla wanted to press into Mack harder, to speed up the tempo of their lips, but she bowed to Mack’s lead without hesitation. Her lips were soft and firm, the press of her body inviting rather than insistent. She kissed like a woman who knew she would leave her partner wanting to chase her down for more. And Kayla would.
A droplet of worry slid into Kayla’s blood. She shouldn’t be feeling this. Not with this kiss. Not with Mack. The burning heat of her desire evaporated the droplet. Turned it to ash and steam with the power of their kiss.
Mack’s lips slid from hers, slowly grazing against her skin to settle on her jaw and then her neck. Her teeth scraped ever so slightly against Kayla’s skin. A groan that was embarrassing in its neediness tore through her. Every instinct in Kayla’s body told her to press for more. To set her hands roaming over Mack’s incredible body. Then Mack retraced the path to her lips, and the fire burned hotter and hotter in her blood. If her body had its way, she would fling Mack to the sand and rip her clothes off. But Kayla held herself back. She had hurt Mack once by pushing this game into something too intimate, too fast. She wouldn’t do it again. Instead, she would enjoy every second of this kiss while knowing it wouldn’t lead anywhere. It was a hard sell for her awakened libido, but she knew how to wrangle her body into submission by sheer force of will.
Mack ended the kiss as softly and smoothly as it had begun. She took a half-step back and waited for Kayla to open her eyes. “You’re a good kisser, LaLa. But I’m a great kisser.”
Well, obviously, but she couldn’t let Mack have the last word. She forced out a laugh and smacked Mack’s arm. “Now who’s conceited?”
“What? You don’t think I’m a great kisser?”
As much as she wanted to tease, Kayla’s thrumming body wouldn’t let her lie. “No, you’re an amazing kisser. But I’m worried about the kissing.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want to hurt you again. Or lead you on.”
Mack’s smile was back to the old crooked, cocky grin. “I think I can keep my heart and body in check. But maybe we should limitthe kissing. I don’t want to set an expectation Skye could never live up to.”
Kayla laughed and slapped her shoulder again, but as they walked back to the room hand-in-hand, she couldn’t help thinking that Skye had never once in nine years made her toes curl like that just from a kiss. That night, for the first time in a decade, Kayla’s thoughts had turned away from Skye to someone else. A whisper in the back of her mind asked if that change was permanent, but she tried with all her might not to listen.
Chapter Twenty
“Come on, keep up.You’re dragging this morning, LaLa.”
Kayla snarled at Mack’s teasing, lopsided grin and picked up her pace. A breeze kicked up, bringing the briny scent of the sea and some nameless flower that grew along the running trail. The well-maintained dirt path wound through the resort grounds, around blocks of villas and guest rooms, but always kept at least a partial view of the ocean.
Whipping around Mack, Kalya skipped ahead and rocketed around a bend in the trail. A cluster of bushes and a lanky palm tree blocked her from Mack’s view. She spun on her heel, careful not to plant her bad knee as she whipped around to face backward. She lifted her heels as she ran backward until Mack’s panting form burst around the corner.
It was challenging to pretend she wasn’t impressed with Mack’s physique, especially after the previous night. She’d always known Mack was muscular, but at home she usually ran in moisture-wicking T-shirts and long joggers. In thehotter, muggier weather of the island, she had switched to loose tank tops and scandalously short shorts that left little to the imagination. Her current top, bright orange with the Rainbow Sands logo artfully weathered on the chest, was already darkened with her sweat.
“Who’s lagging now?” Kayla teased.
Mack jogged past, and Kayla turned back around, slowing her pace to run side by side. “It’s not my fault. Someone made me drink way too many drinks at the pool yesterday.”
“As I recall, it was your idea.”
“I’m choosing to blame your subliminal messaging. After all, I’m not the drinker in this couple.”
Kayla shrugged and ducked under a low-hanging branch. “True story. But it isn’t the booze that’s making it tough for me to get out of bed. It’s your excellent cuddling.”
“Are you saying I’m an even better cuddler than kisser?”
Kayla’s body tingled at the reminder, but she kept her voice steady. “It’s a tie.”
Mack laughed, and Kayla couldn’t help but brighten at the sound. When had Mack gotten so devastatingly charming? “You’re not so bad yourself.”
“Are we talking about the cuddling or the kissing?”
“It’s a tie.” Mack gave her a wink that did all sorts of confusing things to Kayla’s stomach. Their teasing had taken on a new and interesting angle these days. Far flirtier than it had ever been, even in their hormone-soaked teenage years. Kayla focused on her breathing for a few steps just to get a handle on herself. “We should stop beating around the bush and cuddle up as soon as we lie down. I always sleep better when we’re spooning.”
