Page 78 of Fallen Flame

“This one’s important.”

He waited.

I leaned up just enough that our noses were almost touching. “Can I have a morning kiss?”

His eyebrows lifted. “You need permission?”

“I was trying to be respectful.”

“That’s new.”

I rolled my eyes. “I can be respectful.”

“Sometimes.”

“I’ve been respectful for at least...” I pretended to think. “...three whole minutes.”

“I’ll give you two.”

“Rude.”

His hand slid into my hair, his fingers gently brushing against my scalp before he cupped the back of my head. “Come here.”

Like I needed to be told twice.

I closed the distance and our lips met softly. There wasn’t any urgency.

No desperation. No frantic need.

Just... Good morning. It was sweet enough that it made my chest ache.

When we pulled apart, I smiled before leaning in again.

Another kiss.

Then another.

By the fourth one, Oliver chuckled.

“What?”

“You collecting them?”

“Maybe.”

I kissed the corner of his mouth. “I’ve got to make up for lost time.”

He caught my chin before I could steal another one. “As much as I’d love to stay here kissing you all morning...”

I frowned dramatically.

“...we’ve got all the time in the world.”

The words should’ve made me smile. Instead, yesterday flashed through my head. The black van. The hand around my arm. Being yanked backward, and Oliver sprinting toward me. The smile slipped from my face before I could stop it. “It didn’t really seem like we had all the time in the world yesterday.”

His expression changed instantly and the teasing disappeared. He brushed a strand of hair away from my face, his fingertips lingering against my cheek. “I know.”

“I keep thinking...” I swallowed. “What if you’d been pumping gas on the other side of the building?”