Fallen (11 page)

He brought his hand up to her cheek, resting it there as his eyes caressed her face.

“
You know, I was wrong about you,” he said.

“
You were?” she asked. Her lips parted and he felt her rapid breath against his wrist; it pulsed with the same rhythm as his pounding heart.

He nodded.

“
Yes, I was. You’re beautiful.”

Her breath stopped, suspended between her parted lips. She trembled as his arm came around her swiftly, bringing her body up against his. Fear and indecision flashed in her eyes briefly, but by the time his lips pressed against hers it was gone.

Her lips were soft and pliant against his, but chastely closed and still as if she didn’t know what to do. Of course she didn’t, he thought as he brought one hand to the back of her head; she’d probably never been kissed.

The sweetness of it, the purity of the moment touched him in ways he would have never thought possible. He allowed his lips to linger over hers, gently accustoming her to the intimacy of his mouth pressed to hers. As his fingers caressed the back of her neck, he gently coaxed her mouth open with his. She trembled against him as the inside of her mouth met his; warm, moist, heavenly. Her hand came up tentatively against chest, burning his skin through the wet fabric of his t-shirt. Her touch burned its way across his chest until his entire body was heated by it.

She became bolder by the second, angling her head and returning the bold caresses of his lips with her own innocent kisses. A primal satisfaction flared through him at the knowledge that no other man had touched her. No other man had kissed her. At that moment he held a pure, untouched piece of heaven in his arms.

He pulled her more tightly against him, molding her against him. He felt every inch of her through the wet fabric of his clothes. She shuddered against him, reaching up with both hands to grip his shoulders tightly. He wrapped both arms firmly around her, one hand at her hip and one at her back. He feared if he let go, she would fall at his feet.

When he’d nearly stolen her breath away, she pulled away slowly and stepped away from him reluctantly. Somewhere in the back of his mind he realized that the rain had stopped. His eyes remained locked on Sarah.

She took one step away from him, and then another. Her eyes were lowered, her lips tinged pink and parted. Her chest heaved as she struggled for air. She raised her fingers to her mouth as she gazed up at him, her expression of carnal bliss melting into one of pure horror.

“
Sarah,” he said gently, stepping toward her slowly. She shook her head and took another step back.

He reached one hand out for her, but before he could touch her she was gone. Her footsteps echoed across the roof, the skirt of her sundress fluttering behind her. Jackson was rooted to the spot, too numb to follow her. Seconds later, she disappeared from view, leaving Jackson staring off into darkness. Alone.