Star Crossed Hurricane by Wendy Knight

them and trapped them.
    He shifted, groaning. Instantly, she was awake; her eyes flew open and she sat up. “Are you okay? Did I sleep too long? Holy creak, you’ve been stuck sitting on this hard floor this whole time! I’m so sorry!” All that, in one breath.
    He smiled at her flushed cheeks and wild hair. His chest where she’d laid her head already felt cold, and it chilled his heart, having her away from him. “Savannah, I have to tell you something,” he said before his brain fully comprehended what he was about to do.
    “What? Were we attacked by ancient ghosts? Are we dead?” She scrubbed her eyes with her good hand. The other one, with its black and blue bruises from shoulder to elbow, she kept cradled against her ribs. “Did zombies attack and I protected you in my sleep?”
    Sawyer chuckled, taking her good hand. “Not that I know of. Listen… earlier… when I said you were hot…” Holy crap how do I say this? “That’s not why I kissed you.”
    She paled and drew back, pulling her hand away to wrap it around herself.
    Before he could lose his courage or she tried to run away, he hurried on. “I kissed you because I’ve wanted to kiss you from that very first day in English Lit. And every moment since.”
    Her jaw dropped and she blinked at him. He swallowed. “I… love you… really like you. A lot. Maybe even an obsession?”
    She shook her head, like trying to shake the muddled thoughts into order. “Then why — all this time—?”
    “Because before I met you, I hated you.”
    She frowned, subconsciously holding the gash across her forehead.
    This is going well.
    “I’d heard of you from Beck. How you broke his heart. How you’d left him behind for older, hotter college guys. When we moved in together, I was either listening to him cry at night or picking his drunk ass up from bars. Even when he’d bring other girls home, it was all about you.”
    She started to scoot away, but he grabbed her, pulled her back into his lap. “Beck’s my best friend, Savannah. When I realized that you were the girl he couldn’t get over, I was—” devastated “— disappointed. And I know you’ve been trying to ignore this–this thing between us for his sake, too.”
    “I didn’t want him to hurt,” she whispered.
    He reached up, ran his fingers across her cheekbone. “I’ve done everything in my power to stay away from you, but I can’t. Hell, I joined the track team so I’d have an excuse to be with you.”
    She raised an eyebrow. “You’re pretty dang good for only joining it for social reasons.”
    He grinned.
    “It’s killed me having you so close and having to keep you at a distance, Savannah. I don’t know how much longer I can do it.”
    “Me too. Me either. I’m—I don’t want that, either.” She scooted closer, watching him shyly.
    “You’re so beautiful.” He slid his fingers through her hair, tugging it free of its ponytail so it tumbled around her, catching the light. “Even beat up, you’re beautiful.” His fingers trailed through her hair, and it was as soft and silky as he’d dreamed it would be. Her dark eyes widened as he leaned closer. “I’m going to kiss you, Savannah. You know that, right?”
    She nodded, her tongue flicking lightly across her lips. “I was hoping you would.”
    He tilted her chin with his knuckle and lowered his head. He’d been obsessing over this moment for months, and yet he was hit completely unaware for the power of her kiss. Her lips melted against his, stopping his heart, sending his blood rocketing through his veins. “Holy hell, woman,” he groaned against her mouth, rising up on his knees, pulling her with him and against him. She purred, sliding her arms around his neck, her fingers tangling in his hair — sore arm apparently forgotten.
    She was so soft. So perfect. Her mouth molded against his. His hands ran up her back, tangled in her hair, and then back down to pull her hips tighter against him. His tongue, of