Ultimate Passage: New Beginnings: Box Set ( Books 1-4) by Elle Thorne Page A

adjoining bathroom, moistened it with some warm water, and, using the light cast by the bathroom, he unbuttoned her wet, messy top. Between the vomit, the chunks, and what looked like she’d had a red sauce food fight during lunch, the shirt deserved a fiery funeral. He balled it up and tossed it in a corner.
    In the dim lighting, her flesh glowed, tan with white lines from a swimsuit. A lacy contraption—a bra, that much he remembered—covered half her breasts, leaving little to the imagination. Her nipples pressed against the filmy fabric. He sucked a breath in as quietly as he could. Her breasts rose, fell, rose, fell with every inhale and exhale. He found his own breathing matching hers as he stared at her, transfixed by the creamy, glowing skin. His shoulders ached, and he knew why. Damned wings. Damned humans.
    The bra was wet. Leave her in it or...?
    He rummaged through a few drawers and found an oversized T-shirt. Rolling her to her side, he unhooked the contraption holding her breasts hostage then tugged it off. It felt like a bayonet was being driven through his gut. Her curves invited him, and he raised his hand, lowered it. He couldn’t. No. This couldn’t happen.
    Taking the washcloth, he ran its warmth moistness over her neck, her chest and just over the curve of her breast. As he passed it over her nipple, it turned stiff. He let his thumb touch it. Damnation, he couldn’t help himself. He swallowed the thickness that had accumulated in his throat, and adjusted the discomfort growing in his pants. Her nipple pressed back against his thumb. He wanted to taste it. Vomit, sweat, all of that be damned.
    He leaned in, imagining the texture in his mouth. Imagining its response to his sucking.
    She gasped, took a deep breath and rolled over onto her side.
    Saved. To think he was going to—
    He shook his head, as if that would clear it. As if that would make a difference. Fool. Foolish human blood in his body. He stood and paced. Now what? Now?
    It’s fine, he reassured himself. She doesn’t know. She knows nothing. She —
    All he had to do was put her shirt on her, cover her, go to her couch, and go to sleep. She’d wake up in the morning and be none the wiser. She’d assume she’d dressed herself and that he was the perfect chaperone.
    He slipped the T-shirt over her body, covered her and slipped out, leaving the door cracked open. Then he leaned against the wall just outside the door, and stared out the window at the moonless, cloudless sky.
    What am I doing? What have I done?
    What was I going to do?

Chapter 19
    H er head felt like it was going to explode. She knew that feeling. Knew it well, though it had been forever since she’d last felt it. Marissa groaned and pulled the pillow over her face. The sun. Brutal! The night before was a dim fog of a memory, but she knew she’d gone to Hush last night. She’d—
    Marissa bolted upright.
    Finn.
    She scanned her bed. There definitely weren’t any signs of a wild, passionate night. Or a hot guy.
    What was she thinking? She wasn’t the type. She didn’t do stuff like that. No, not normally , the voice reminded her. But he was hot. And you were drunk. Still, she didn’t—
    No, she hadn’t. The room was unoccupied. She was in her night T-shirt, and the other half of the bed was untouched. And she was pretty sure no parts of the bed would have been untouched if he’d been here.
    What the hell is wrong with me? She was acting like a whacked out, hormonal, horny...
    She buried her face in the pillow and laughed at herself.
    A knock interrupted her.
    God. That sounded close. The door crept open. “Marissa?”
    Him. Oh. Him. Finn. OhOhOh. Oooooh.
    She jerked the sheets up to her neck. “Yes?” Back to the pretty-much-a-croak-while-he-was-around sound. Shit.
    “Just checking on you.”
    “Oh. I’m—” What the hell was he doing here? “I’m okay. I don’t remember much of last night.”
    “No problem. We shared a cab. I stayed to make sure you