Inhale: Book One (bxb) ✔️

14. Exist.

Everest Pierce

Miami, Florida (Disney)
November 15th evening.

Landon referred to me as peace. He associated me with peace. He looked at me like I was peace.

Never once did Landon think about how much peace he could offer someone.

Never once did he insinuate he could disrupt the peace we both gave each other.

Never once did I realize I could be partly to blame for the disruption of the peace.

There was nothing peaceful about the way his lips touched mine. There was nothing peaceful about the way my hand tightened on the back of his neck. There was nothing peaceful about the first initial taste I was given of him. There was nothing peaceful about the way I refused to let him get away with one touch of his delicious taste. There was nothing peaceful about the way I hungered for more. And there was nothing peaceful about the way I made sure to get it.

I pushed him impossibly closer to me, devouring more than he initially offered. The whine that left him was swallowed, and his eagerness matched mine. He was giving me something I never thought I'd have, and I wasn't sure what was going to happen after this. I'd never made it this far, and I never thought I would. But Landon had enough courage for the both of us. Whereas I couldn't lie to him, he couldn't conceal his truth. He kissed me like he longed for me as long as I'd longed for him.

The way he kissed me told stories I wasn't sure he'd even read for himself yet. His fingers digging into my neck gave me the indication there was far more here than he realized. He hungered and fought for more. It was sloppy, all over the place, but neither of us could get enough. Maybe we were both afraid of what came after. Maybe we both wanted to bathe in the glow of this moment before reality came crashing in. Before we both realized there was far more we had to talk about than we initially thought.

Landon tasted like sugar and amazing decisions. A taste I couldn't get enough of. He tasted like a delectable future, should he want that. A future could be anything we wanted it to be. I knew, at that moment, that I wanted there to be more of these addicting kisses between us. Maybe less covered in cake and more covered in each other. But I refused to get ahead of myself. I couldn't. I had to live in this singular moment, otherwise it would go to waste. And nothing about Landon was to be wasted.

Despite craving more of him, we both pulled away with a heavy breath and wide eyes. We looked at each other like we should have been doing that the entire time. Even if I knew I wasn't a good candidate during the time I fell hopelessly in love with him, I still wished we could have been engaging in kissing one another for far longer. But no, I refused to be selfish where he was concerned. I had to conceal the stronger areas of my feelings and lean into what he offered. Whether that was a sliver of scraps or the whole damn platter. I'd take it. And I'd cherish it.

Landon stared at me with something that looked strangely like guilt. "Shit, now I know there is something I have to be honest about. Well, realistically, I knew I should have been honest about it before this happened, but you crawled into my brain and made me stupid." He waved away his words as my anxiety started to spike. "Not stupid in a bad way. Very good way. But there is something else I should have told you. I tried to tell myself that I would tell you later. But no, I should have told you this a long time ago. I was afraid to trigger you, though. I swear. I didn't have cruel intentions behind keeping this from you. I promise. I promise."

I continued to stare at him. I didn't know what to say. What did he have to tell me that he was afraid would trigger me? Why did it have to be now? I came up with far too many questions to handle. There wasn't anything he could tell me that would change my mind. Not unless he was married, in a relationship, or otherwise. Apart from that, I would simply be happy even if he told me he was a fucking serial killer.