Jennifer L. Armentrout

She opened her eyes. "Is this real?""Very real." I brushed the soaked strands off her cheek, wondering if I was lying or not and if I should care if I was. "Angel, let me kiss you.

There were always choices. I__ made a string of bad ones myself. At least I could admit that.

But if you take off your clothes, I__ sure I can get them dry.__y eyes went wide. __re you trying tog et my naked?__is silvery gaze met mine. __o you really need me to answer that?__ hot, sweet flush stole across my cheeks. When he was like this__pen, flirty, and downright sexy__ was at my lamest. I wasn__ used to this side of him. I don__ think I ever would be, and there was something thrilling in that. But I stared at him, caught between the images playing out in my head and the very real man standing before me.

The mansion was as silent as I wished the inside of my head could be. No noise _ not even a ragged inhale of breath or a whispered word. Truly blissful.

Silence is not a fucking virtue. It__ a disease___ cancer that eats away at you and fucks with your head.

When I got home, a spicy scent lured me into the kitchen. My stomach grumbled and I might__e started drooling the moment I spotted the cheesy enchiladas cooling on the counter.They were drenched in homemade queso.My favorite.Dropping my bag on the floor, I skipped over to where Rosa was placing the plates on the table. I wrapped my arms around her from behind and squeezed.Rosa laughed as she turned. __t__ the queso, isn__ it?__odding, I dropped my arms and stepped back.

Eat it," I ordered, holding it with two hands now, making it dance in the air. "It's begging you. 'Eat me'."He arched a brow."Perv," I muttered.Aiden pressed his lips together, but when he glanced at me and my dancing bun, he burst into laughter. "All right, give me the bun.

With every breath I take, I will always love you.

Am I glowing?""Like a Christmas tree.""Not just the star?"The bed moved a little, and I felt his hand brush my arm. "No. You're super bright. It's kind of like looking at the sun.

I've always found that the most beautiful people, truly beautiful inside and out, are those who are quietly unaware of their effect.

My heart cracked. Daemon never begged.

Can I tell you something?___eah._ I wished I could tell him it was okay to keep touching my face, but that would probably be weird. Totally sounded weird in my head. And would be really inappropriate. Totally inappropriate.His lashes lowered and the lopsided grin appeared. __ always knew you__ be beautiful one day.__y breath hitched as I sat straighter. What was left of the pizza, just the crust, was totally forgotten. My ears had to be smoking crack or something.A flush swept across his cheeks as one side of his lips kicked up. __ just never thought I__ get to see how beautiful you__ become.

You__e beautiful, too. I mean, you__e hot,_ I blurted out. __ut I always knew you would be._ My eyes widened as I realized what just streamed out of my mouth, and his grin turned into a smile. __h my God, I did not just say...any of that out loud.___ou did.___gh.__ipping his head back, he laughed deeply. And he laughed like he had in those rare instances when something truly amused him. He did so with a freedom I__ envied.I started to place my hands over my flaming face, but he caught my wrists, holding them between us. His eyes were lighter, dancing. __ can pretend you didn__ say that if that makes you feel better,_ he suggested.Oh yes, that would be fabulous. I nodded.__ won__ forget it, though.

Hell..._ His voice was thick, rough. __allory, you__e...___hat?_ I whispered, feeling my body burn for two very different reasons.__ou__e beautiful._ His gaze dipped, tracking the lacy edges of the bra. __ever thought I__ see you like this. So freaking glad I have. You__e so beautiful, Mallory.

You know what they say about boys next door...

I couldn't stop staring at his mouth when he spoke. I bet he knew how to kiss. Perfect kisses too, ones that weren't wet and gross, but the kind that curled toes.I needed to stop looking at him in general.

Ever since I__e met you, I__e wanted to break every rule._ Aiden turned away, the muscles in his neck tensing. He sighed. __ou__l become the centre of someone__ world one day. And he__l be the luckiest son of a bitch on this earth.

His gaze locked with mine and a slow grin appeared on his face. He didn__ look like he had last night. More like he did every day at school. Worn jeans. A black henley instead of a T-shirt and beat-up sneakers, but goodness, I couldn__ think.Okay. Not true. I could think, but I was thinking things I really had no concept of. I was thinking about those full, slightly curved lips and how they must feel in places...other than my forehead or cheek. I was thinking about his hands and how strong they were and the oddly pleasant calluses on his palms. I was thinking about...about a lot of things__hings that now didn__ feel so wrong since he was actually single.Noticing my near-prone position, Ainsley looked over her shoulder. __h, my good God almighty,_ she murmured. __hat__ him?___es,_ I whispered. That was so him.