Kiss Me Like You Mean It

Jane Wilde has carried self-doubt through every stumble toward intimacy. Dates, kisses, the body that should arrive afterward, all of them slip past her, leaving her locked inside her own head. She hires Serene Siren to break the pattern. Serene cannot picture this striking girl trapped behind such fear, yet the moment Jane lays out the high-school nightmare that set everything in motion, Serene sees the roots. No matter. Serene knows she can rewrite it. She begins the way every bold lesson begins, with a command. Kiss me. Jane hesitates until Serene assures her this is simply work. The first kiss comes anyway, tight-lipped and quick, but that will not ignite the air between them. With a nod and a touch, Serene persuades her pupil to come closer. Jane melts forward at last, mouth open, tongue sliding in, giving Serene every inch of the shy, starving girl hiding underneath.