Below is an excerpt from romantic suspense novel Buried Deception by Amanda McKinney, On the Edge, Book 1 (published by Montlake, an imprint of Amazon Publishing).

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Mia

This kiss was different from the one we’d shared in the woods.

Our first had been an explosion, a release of sexual tension, a surrendering to the lust. He’d devoured me like a man on death row, unable to control himself. It was hot. Ravenous. The kiss had curled my toes, made me forget my own name. A kind of dizzying rush that after you experienced your first taste, it was all you ever wanted. Like a drug.

This kiss, though . . . this kiss was different. Softer, gentler, his fingertips slowly running down the side of my face as if he wanted to memorize every line of me.

Fingers ran over my scalp, through my hair, sending a rush of tingles over my skin. I felt a rush of heat below, an unfamiliar throbbing between my legs that ignited every sexual sensor in my body.

The room was dark, scarcely illuminated by the nightlight, stealing my vision and increasing the sensitivity of his touch.

When I wrapped my arms around his neck, tugging him on top of me, he stopped. Pulled back.

“Mia . . .”

“No.” I shook my head, desperation welling in my chest. “Don’t. Please.”

His brows creased with conflict. “But, Mia, I—”

“No. I’m not broken, Easton. Don’t treat me like I’m broken. Don’t treat me like I’m dirty.” I ripped the towel off my naked body. “I’m not dirty. See?” Tears rolled down my cheeks. I was shaking, trembling with emotion. “I’m not dirty.”

“Oh, baby.” Tears came as he leaned in, kissed my lips, my cheeks. “Don’t ever say that again.”

“Then don’t ever treat me like that again. If I were a normal woman, you would take me right now. Take me, Easton,” I begged shamelessly. “Take it away, please. Please. Erase it, replace it . . . with you.”

He blinked, a tear escaping.

And then, like two magnets, we collided, rolling onto the center of the bed. I remember the heat of him, the smell—God, that smell that was Easton Crew.

As I stripped off his clothes, he pulled the towel from my naked body, the sweep of the soft fibers sending a wave of tickles across my skin. I couldn’t get close enough to him. I wanted to crawl inside him. He was everywhere, and at the same time, not nearly close enough.

His tip found my opening, and my breath caught. I braced as he slowly slid into me, two lost souls becoming one. Two imperfect disasters, that somehow, when united, find absolute peace.

“Easton…” My body tightened around him, as if he’d always belonged there.

Our eyes locked as he took his time settling into me, savoring every second of the moment.

I’ll never forget how he cradled me in his arms as we moved together, as one, or the tear that dripped down his cheek as we climaxed together. The way he looked at me after, the way he stroked my forehead, gently kissed my face.

There were no butterflies, no fireworks . . . just absolute peace. For a single moment, everything was calm. Everything was right in the world.

“I’m afraid I’m going to fall in love with you, Mia Frost.”

“I’m already there.”

buried deception romantic suspense amanda mckinney

Buried Deception is available at Amazon and Bookshop.

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