SEIZED Part 1: New Adult Romantic Suspense (Seize Me Romance Fiction Series) by JC Coulton Read Free Book Online Page B

me, urging me on. He knew how much I wanted to win and how embarrassed I was to have people see me fail. I hadn’t even told April I was trying out, but for some reason I had found myself telling Blake about the qualifiers. He didn’t wave and cheer or make noise like the other supporters, that wouldn’t have been his MO. But I remember that he stayed for every heat during this track meet, his presence comforting me in the pressured atmosphere.
    With each race, the coaches got more and more tense, but somehow I kept making it through. Only two female runners could represent Cedar Rapids, and because our school had the best facilities, there were girls from schools all over town trying out. The air felt tight and hot to breathe. There were dozens of runners on the track in various states of undress. I was wearing my school shorts, a tank, and my lucky underwear. But I didn’t really believe I could make the cut.
    In the end, I did. The moment I crossed the finish line, he jumped over the railings and wrapped me in his arms. I was sweaty, but he pulled me against him and we breathed each other in for way too long. My head was spinning and still breathless from the race. My chest was heaving, but I moved in closer and pressed against him. I didn’t let go, and when he didn’t either, I felt myself relax into his arms. Together we stood, as a field of busy people took no notice, and my breathing started to slow.
    My back and the tops of thighs began to come alive as his hand meandered down past my tank top to the space between it and my shorts. I wanted his hands to go lower. I wanted more, but I wasn’t sure of anything, so I just pulled him closer and hoped he’d get the picture. I felt his hips shift against my belly.
    Unable to suppress a moan, I unconsciously tipped my head to the side, exposing my neck to his warm breath. Then I felt his long fingers trail up my collarbone, into the hollow of my throat and up behind my ear. He played with my ear lobe and looked down at me; his eyes seeming to smile. We were closer than we’d ever been, and it didn’t feel wrong at all.
    The moment stretched on and still he didn’t pull away. I looked at his mouth then back up at his eyes. I was tingling all over, my hips were pressed against his thighs and our bodies were so close.
    He raised an eyebrow and said, “Well, that’s a surprise.”
    I swallowed; I didn’t know how to take his comment. I thought about it too much as he said it, and that’s when the moment was ruined. A surprise that I would hit on him? A surprise that he’d like it? What was a surprise? That I won? I was dying to ask, but I didn’t have the courage and the moment was lost.
    Reluctantly, I had pulled away. Someone was calling my name, and I was thirsty. I was off balance physically, and it was more than just the fifteen hundred meter run. I didn’t know what to think, but my heart was pounding. God, I wanted him.
    I took a breath, and when I looked back up I saw him do the same. Everything was different. Blake said he had to go, but congratulated me and put his thumb on my lower lip. It stayed there for just a second, but he didn’t meet my eyes, and in that stupid teenage way that wants affirmation, I asked him to call me. I’m sure I was smiling more about our ‘almost kiss’ than I was about the win. My cheeks were burning, but I looked down and pulled it together before I casually said goodbye as he walked away, leaving me to my thoughts.
    I wrench myself back into the moment when he offers me a soda.
    “You look like you’re ready to collapse.” He’s right, and all I want to do is sleep, but everything feels too big. I’ll head back to the hotel, but then what? It’s not like a nap is going to help find my friend. I don’t even have the key to the hotel, or my wallet or anything. He answers the question for me.
    “You’re done here for now, so all that’s left to do is rest. I’ll have the nurse check you again for a