Page 45 of Love Bomb

“Bain,” Rona said on a sigh. “I’m asking this in all seriousness—is there a counselor I can call who’ll come and help you?”

“I don’t need a counselor,” he said, his attention on her hair. “I thought I might need some divine intervention, but Father McMurtry told me there was nothing he could do to help.”

Honestly, she had no idea what to say to that. Suddenly it was as though all his anger and frustration just melted away, and he was staring at her as though she was a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve.

He tugged a lock of her hair straight and watched in fascination as it bounced back into place. “Ringlets,” he muttered, sounding a little stunned.

Bain’s moods were giving her whiplash. She didn’t know whether to fight with him, laugh at him, or kiss him stupid. And the emotional overload made it hard to think straight.

He was so close she could feel his breath on her skin. His eyes had darkened, and his gaze was intense. Suddenly, Bain’s entire focus was on her. Rona felt frozen in place. A deer in headlights. Unable to run—even if she wanted to.

And she had no idea what she wanted to do.

He’d insulted her, confused her, frustrated her…

But.

He was Bain.

She knew him.

She’d made a study of him for years. And he wasn’t acting out of malice. He was genuinely spiraling out of control, and trying to make sense of a world that had changed when he wasn’t looking. She’d changed when he wasn’t looking.

“Bain, I don’t know how to help you here,” she told him. “You’re confusing me.”

“I know.” He sounded lost. “If it’s any consolation, I’m confusing myself, too. Just when I think I have things figured out, you get close, and everything gets scrambled again.”

“Maybe you should talk to somebody else about this?” she suggested. “Somebody neutral. Somebody who won’t want to hit you over the head for being frustrating and insulting.”

His lips twitched and he almost smiled.

“You obviously need help,” she said.

“What I need is…” He trailed off and groaned. It sounded desperate. “God help me, but I need another taste.”

She sucked in a breath as her eyes went wide.

“I can still taste you on my tongue, but it’s fading, and I hate that I’m losing it. You taste like springtime feels.”

“Bain?” she whispered as her heart pounded erratically.

His gaze dropped to her mouth. “Just one more taste and then everything will be okay,” he whispered.

And then his mouth covered hers.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Rona felt like she was riding a rollercoaster.

One second they were chugging calmly along, getting on fine. The next, they were plummeting through an emotional maelstrom that made her want to get off the track. Then, just as fast, they were going up again, racing towards the stars as the world disappeared beneath them.

With only Bain’s strong arms to hold her up, their kiss deepened. Her heart raced, her knees went weak. She was floating. Riding a wave of sensation made up of pure, unadulterated bliss.

More, she thought. More.

Nothing had ever felt or tasted this good. She wanted to burrow into Bain’s scent and revel in it. She wanted to lose herself in his warmth. In his touch. In his need for her.

How could one simple kiss do this to her? Just one touch and she was gone. There was nothing else left. Only Bain and what he made her feel.