My breath left me in a whoosh as I collided with a brick wall. I let out a little oomph with the impact. Strong hands curled around my biceps, and I looked up to see who caught me. Zayne stared down into my eyes, his face stoic and mouth clamped shut. For a moment I feared he’d end it right then and there since I’d taunted him so confidently.
But he didn’t. He simply held my gaze for several long seconds before his eyes dropped to my mouth. My already heaving breath hitched as heat flooded my lower belly. He released his hold on me, but his hands didn’t fall away. One cupped my face and the other snaked around my waist. He pressed me against the partition as his fingers dug into my hair.
“Zayne,” I whispered, his name a warning and a plea.
His lips crashed over mine, and I let out a soft moan. I opened to him as his tongue slid across the seam of my lips. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pressed into him. Our vests prevented our chests from touching, but there was nothing to shield me from the hardened length growing against my belly. I whimpered, and he took the opportunity to deepen our kiss.
Too soon, he pulled away, and his chest heaved as though I’d stolen his breath. Something caught his eye over my shoulder, and his features hardened.
“Go that way,” he instructed, and I ducked under his arm. I bolted across an opening to hide behind another wall and then turned to where he stood. He was watching me with a hunger in his eyes I’d never seen before. He turned and headed past the spot where we’d kissed, meeting one of his friends about twenty yards away. Now I knew what he’d seen over my shoulder. He hadn’t wanted his friend to get to me. Or he hadn’t wanted to get caught cavorting with the enemy. Either way, it worked in my favor because now I had a clear shot of my opponent.
I took it, and when Colton’s vest lit up, Zayne’s head snapped to me. I smirked and gave a little finger wave before ducking out of sight.
Two more players were eliminated, leaving just Zayne and me. My heart pounded, the sound in my ears nearly drowning out everything else. It took several minutes to find each other, but when we did, we both froze. He eyed me skeptically, his laser tag gun raised.
“What do you say, Maren? Tie?”
Finger poised on the trigger, I mulled his offer over in my head, but I was too damn competitive to accept a tie. One of us had to win.
“There are no ties in war,” I said, and his eyes widened. Before he could take his shot, I squeezed the trigger.