Page 94 of Freeing Lark

And then there was his beard. That almost lumberjack-looking beard she’d found so intimidating when they’d first met. She’d discovered she liked it. A lot.

Her gaze lingered over the broad line of his jaw and the strength evident even when he wasn’t doing anything. This man had frightened her once. Now, looking at him, she felt something entirely different. Words like safe, wanted, and maybe even cherished filtered through her mind. Her heart gave a little squeeze. I’m falling so hard.

As if he’d heard her thoughts, his lashes fluttered. Lark immediately closed her eyes. She was absolutely not going to get caught staring.

She felt the mattress shift. He’d woken. She could feel his gaze on her. It lingered long enough that pretending became ridiculous.

“You keep looking at me like you want to say something.”

His voice was low and rough with sleep. “Maybe I do.”

“Then say it.” Silence. Lark opened her eyes. He was watching her. “So?” He didn’t answer. She moved a fraction closer. “Coward.”

Then, before she could lose her nerve, she kissed him. For one heartbeat, Cormac went completely still. Then his good arm came around her, and he kissed her back.

The kiss quickly deepened, all the uncertainty of the past few days burning away beneath it. His hand settled at her waist, drawing her closer. Lark slid her fingers over the cropped strands of his hair, and the low sound he made against her mouth sent a shiver through her.

He broke the kiss long enough to look at her. There was a question in his eyes. Lark answered by kissing him again.

His restraint finally cracked. He kissed her with a hunger that left her breathless, but every movement remained careful of his injured shoulder. His hand moved along her back, tracing her shape as though he were memorizing her.

When his fingers caught the hem of her shirt, he stopped. He looked at her. Asking.

Lark’s heart hammered. She caught the fabric herself and pulled it over her head. His eyes darkened. Her hands found the hem of his T-shirt next. She hesitated.

His expression softened. Lark carefully helped him remove it, mindful of his stitches. Then she leaned down and kissed the skin beside the bandage near his shoulder. A trident tattoo was inked onto the opposite shoulder, and she kissed that too.

Cormac’s eyes closed, his jaw tightening. “Careful,” he murmured. “I’m still trying to behave, and you’re making that increasingly difficult.”

Lark smiled against his skin. “Good. I was beginning to wonder if the big, scary SEAL had any weaknesses.”

His eyes opened, a wicked glint flashing in those shocking blue depths. “You might be one of them.”

Her heart skipped. “Then I guess you’d better be careful too.”

“Pretty sure that warning came a little late.” His mouth curved. “You’ve been my weakness since the day you spilled my espresso.”

Lark’s breath caught at his words, and for once, her usual snark deserted her. She studied his face, searching those amazing blue eyes as if she could tell whether he meant the words as much as they sounded like he had. But instead of letting him see how much they affected her, she lifted one eyebrow and a mischievous smile tugged at her lips.

“Since the espresso?” she whispered. “I thought you were just annoyed with me.”

“I was.”

She laughed softly. “Good. I’d hate to think I made a terrible first impression.” She leaned closer until their foreheads touched. “Although, if I’ve been your weakness since then…” Her smile turned playful. “I suppose I should apologize.”

He raised an eyebrow. “For what?”

“For ruining your peaceful, uncomplicated life. I hear you SEAL types like things orderly.”

Cormac’s mouth curved, but his eyes stayed on hers. “Peaceful and uncomplicated?” he repeated. “Lark, I haven’t had either of those things since I was nineteen.”

She smiled. “So I’m not really ruining anything?”

“Not even close.” His hand slid gently along her waist, careful of his shoulder. “You’re just making it a hell of a lot more interesting.”

She laughed softly. “That’s one way to look at it.”

“It’s the way I’m choosing to look at it.” His gaze dropped briefly to her lips before returning to her eyes. “And for the record…” His thumb brushed her cheek. “Some things are worth disrupting the order for.”