The Winner Takes It All. Alison Roberts

      The blue of his eyes deepened. “Thank you.”

      “For what?”

      “This.” Cullen lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. Hard.

      Heaven. His kiss made Sarah feel like she had died and gone to heaven. Best to enjoy every second, every minute if she was that lucky. She had a feeling this might be as close as she ever got to the pearly gates while her heart still beat. And beating it was.

      In triple time.

      His lips moved over hers with skill and familiarity. The kiss brought her home, back to where she’d longed to be for months now…in his arms. She’d thought about him, dreamed about him, missed him, even though she should have been getting over him. And now she realized why she was having so much trouble getting over him. He tasted warm and inviting. This was a yummy, comfy place she never wanted to leave. Each touch of his mouth, of his hands, made her tingle inside.

      Forget pain medication—this was all she needed to feel better. Her blood simmered, rushing through her veins. It had been so long, too long, since she’d felt wanted. She didn’t want the feeling to end.

      His hand ran up her back, caressing her, until her hair was running through his fingers.

      More. She wanted more.

      Sarah parted her lips. He accepted the invitation and deepened the kiss, pressing harder against her mouth.

      He’d followed her lead. It was time to follow his.

      Her tongue reacquainted itself with him, exploring the recesses of his mouth. She remembered all the times they’d kissed before. Remembered the good times in their marriage when she had believed it would last forever. Maybe her memories were hazy because of the concussion, but this kiss felt different. Better, somehow.

      She didn’t want to analyze it too deeply. She wanted to…enjoy.

      Heat pooled deep inside her. Need ached. Grew.

      A moan escaped her lips.

      More. Please.

      Cullen drew her closer. She arched into him, only to come to an abrupt stop. She crashed into something hard, sending a jagged pain through her sore and healing abdomen. Her lips slipped off his. Spots appeared before her eyes.

      Pain weakened her knees. It hurt, almost burned, so badly, but she didn’t fall. Cullen held on to her.

      He groaned, but didn’t let go.

      Sarah forced herself to breathe. A knife seemed to be slicing through her midsection. She straightened, intensifying the pain more. She looked down.

      Stupid cast.

      With the permanent bend in her elbow, her arm was stuck in position, a barrier between them.

      In spite of her stomach hurting, she couldn’t deny her reaction to Cullen’s kisses. Her swollen and bruised lips throbbed. Her heart beat wildly. Her pulse hadn’t settled.

      She wanted to rewind time and relieve each second of his kisses.

      Stupid. Dumb.

      Forget about the cast getting in the way—she should have known better than to kiss him back the way she had. “I’m so sorry.”

      Cullen bent over, gasping for air. “Give me a sec.”

      The rasp in his voice made Sarah look at her cast. “More dangerous than I imagined.”

      He glanced up at her. “You have no idea.”

      Sarah reached toward him, then thought better of it. If she touched him, she would kiss him again. She pressed her left hand against her side. Pain made her want to sit. She leaned against the couch. “You okay?”

      He straightened. “I can breathe now. How about you?”

      Her senses reeled. Her heart screamed for more kisses. Her incisions hurt. “I’ve been better. But the pain’s subsiding quicker than it usually does.”

      Cullen’s mouth twisted. He looked so serious. As if the fate of the world rested on his shoulders and he’d screwed things up. “This was…”

      “A mistake.” Better for her to admit it before him. She should never have kissed him back. “If you’re worried I’m thinking this changes things between us, don’t be. The other kiss didn’t. This one won’t, either.”

      He didn’t say a word, but his dark gaze remained on her.

      “Kisses are an old habit for us. The opportunity arose again. I wanted to be kissed. It was bound to happen,” she rambled, trying to justify what had occurred. “Someday we’ll look back at this and laugh.”

      He raised a brow. “You think?”

      She had no idea, but laughing this off was better than analyzing it to death and not liking her conclusion. “Sure.”

      “Most kisses aim for romance, not humor.”

      Was he aiming for romance by kissing her? Her pulse accelerated. No more kisses. “True, but romantic kisses are a dime a dozen. This one…”

      A grin tugged at his lips. He rubbed his stomach. “I won’t be forgetting this one anytime soon.”

      Her neither. But for different reasons than his.

      Warning bells sounded in her head. Who was she kidding? She was past the warning stage. Alarms blared.

      Best not to travel this road again. Giving in to desire would lead to disappointment and heartache. She couldn’t do that to herself, to her heart. “But it won’t happen again.”

      “Definitely not.”

      That was fast. Almost too fast. And he had said probably before, but definitely this time. Disappointment spiraled to the tips of her toes. At least they agreed, right?

      She pressed her lips together, unsure what to say or do next. That seemed to be standard operating procedure whenever she was around Cullen. So why had she been so eager to see him when she woke up this morning?

      He walked into the kitchen. “You mentioned taking a nap. While you sleep, I’ll figure out dinner. I’m sure we have enough leftovers.”

      “It’s Taco Night at the brewpub.”

      “You’re in pain.”

      She didn’t want to stay inside, with him so close and her aching with surprise need. “I want to go out.”

      His gaze raked over her, assessing her like one of his patients. “It’ll be too much for you after such a long day.”

      “I’ve done nothing but lie or sit around, except for a walk outside with Bill.”

      Cullen’s eyes narrowed. “There’s snow on the ground. You could have slipped.”

      “We didn’t go far, and Bill never let go of my arm.”

      “How gentlemanly of him.”

      Sarah didn’t appreciate Cullen’s sarcastic tone, but maybe she could use this to her advantage. “Do you want to go to the brewpub tonight or not?”

      “I like Taco Night, but I’m happy to stay home tonight. It’s been a long week.”

      She empathized with that. “You must be exhausted.”

      He opened the refrigerator. “Let’s go next week.”

      “You can go then.” She straightened. “I’m going tonight. I’ll call Bill.”

      Cullen slammed the fridge door. “Why do you want to go so badly?”

      “I’m desperate to get out of the house.”

      He arched a brow. “Desperate?”

      Sarah nodded. “I’ve