He looks down at me then, and as our eyes meet, my belly flips. The emotion swirling in his eyes is something I haven’t yet seen, but his eyebrows pull together as he battles to keep it together. He turns his body and faces me, coming closer, mere inches away, before he brings his other hand up and caresses my cheek so softly, I wonder if I am imagining his touch.

“Tell me, Little Red. Have you ever been kissed?” he asks, and I blush at his question. My heart races, and I swallow hard, unsure of where he is going with this.

“Yes,” I say quietly, not sure how much information to tell him.

“Did you like it?” His hands cup my jaw, and my heart begins to beat as I prepare for what he is going to do. Is he going to kiss me? I want him to kiss me, so badly. I want to feel his lips on mine. I want him to teach me how good it can be.

“It wasn’t what I thought it would be like,” I say honestly with a small shoulder shrug, my eyes still locked onto his.

“Then he wasn’t doing it properly.” His thumb brushes across my lips, pulling my bottom lip down, my breathing quickening at the feel of him touching me like this.

“Dante…” My body is acting like it has a mind of its own as I step a little closer to him.

He drops his head to mine, his lips grazing my ears. “If you say my name like that again, Little Red, I don’t think I will be able to stop myself from showing you how a real man treats a woman.” Pulling back slightly, nerves dance around in my stomach, and I can hardly breathe as I realize that he is going to give me exactly what I’ve been longing for.

Dante leans in and takes my lips in his, softly at first, his lips massaging mine, before his tongue begins to explore. This is nothing like I experienced before and everything I’ve ever dreamed of. His hands cup my jaw as he lifts my head to meet his, and I grip onto his wrists, not wanting to let go. He kisses me harder as I hold on to him, like he can’t get enough, almost urgently as if I am about to disappear and he needs his fill of me before I vanish.

He tastes like coffee, but subtly so, and his lips are so plush as he kisses me like I never imagined anyone would ever kiss me.

He pulls away slightly, both of us panting, and leans his forehead against mine. I notice a small twinkle in his eye, which makes me think he enjoyed that just as much as I did.

“Was that better than what you had before?” he asks, with a growing smirk on his face.