It was nothing like the kiss we’d shared before. That had been all anger and lust, a battle of tempers bathed in blood. That was an inferno. This was a hearth. Carefully tended over weeks of friendship, the traumas we’d endured, and the secrets we shared. A smaller flame, perhaps, but steadier. Strong. A fire that didn’t burn to consume, but to endure—to keep us warm through the perils of the dark, cold night.
