Air Ryder (Harper's Mountains Book 3) by T. S. Joyce Read Free Book Online

arms on either side of her hips. He leaned in so close her breath froze in her chest.
    Slowly, he lifted a finger and brushed it against her eyebrow, smoothing her frown away.
    She’d done her research about shifters, and even flight shifters could hear a lie, so she didn’t even try. “You scare me.”
    Ryder eased back by inches, studied her face. “I’m in control of my animal. I would never hurt you.”
    “That’s not what I mean.”
    His face went slack with realization. For a moment, he was right there, locked in her gaze, and she witnessed the change in his eyes firsthand. They morphed from blue to a bright gold that was almost hard to look at…almost. He dipped his gaze to her lips, and this was it. He was going to kiss her, and it would make him even more terrifying. She would fall in love without him, because that’s what she did. She picked men who were unavailable.
    “Ryder,” she said on a breath. At some point, she had to learn her lesson and protect herself.
    “I’m not what you think I am,” he whispered. Slowly, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers.
    She’d imagined this moment in the build-up to today. Imagined what his lips would feel like on hers, but she’d come nowhere close to the real thing. The rasp of his beard prickled against her soft face, such a contrast. Rough man, soft woman. But his lips were easy against hers, forming perfectly to match hers. He angled his head and sipped at her, and she could feel it. The slight brush of his tongue on her closed lips.
    This was the moment when she should ease away and tell him she wasn’t ready, but she couldn’t put space between them, no matter how hard she tried. There was this pull, like she was metal and he was a magnet. Fighting the attraction would do no good.
    Weak.
    No , some inner voice said. Not weak. Happy.
    He did make her happy.
    Parting her lips slightly, she allowed him in on the next pass, his tongue dipping into her mouth. He tasted divine, and she let off a soft noise deep in her throat. She rested her palm on his cheek to feel his jaw move as he kissed her and, holy moly, no kiss had ever felt like this. It wasn’t passionate lust or neediness that drove his tongue against hers, stroke after reverent stroke. He was building a slow fire in her middle so that she would burn longer and brighter.
    He pulled her hand from his cheek, slowly drew it behind his neck, and stood, bringing her with him. His body was rock hard against hers, and his erection was stony between their hips, but he didn’t push for more. Ryder seemed content to just tether her to him completely with this kiss.
    “Do you want cheese on your burgers?” someone shouted from across the street. Whoever it was probably wasn’t talking to her and Ryder.
    Lexi slid her other arm around his neck and sighed a happy sound at his slow dips into her mouth.
    A shrill whistle echoed. “Ryder, take a break from sucking face long enough to tell me cheese or no cheese, man. I’m about to burn this meat!”
    Ryder growled and ended the kiss with a soft smack, then yelled behind him, “Fucking surprise me, man! I’m busy!”
    Lexi giggled and hid her face against Ryder’s chest.
    “Sooo,” Aaron called. “Yes to cheese on both? Lexi? Cheese?”
    “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Ryder muttered. With an irritated sigh, he cocked his head and asked her, “Lexi, would you like to eat with my crew?”
    “I would love to, but maybe we should wait until that goes down?” She snickered and pointed to his massive boner.
    “No,” Ryder said with a baffled head shake. “Come on, Sprinkles,” he muttered, pulling Lexi behind him. “Interrupting Aaron can deal with an eyeful of my happy wienice, and fuck him if he mentions it.”
    Oh, dear goodness, he said wienice ! Ryder seemed mad so she stifled her laughter. Lexi should be embarrassed, really she should, but Ryder had very little shame about bodily functions, so okay. She probably smelled like a vat of