Dynasty [Eric Coulter]

1.3

*

His lips were soft.

Butterflies were flittering around Ana's stomach, her face hot as Eric's lips moved with hers. He brought a hand to her cheek, wrapping his other hand around her waist to bring her closer to him.

Ana leaned into his warm chest, placing her hands on his arms as she tilted her head. They kissed slowly, both unsure of what the other wanted. Eric's lips were almost still against her own and she tipped her head just enough to make him respond.

She hadn't kissed anyone like this before - there was one boy who kissed her when she was thirteen and she shoved him away as quick as he had kissed her. She didn't have a clue what she was doing and she wasn't sure how much experience Eric had.

But as his lips melted against her own, she had a feeling he knew what he was doing.

A low noise sounded from Eric's throat and Ana felt her entire body set fire.

"Meet me tomorrow." Eric whispered, his voice raspy when he pulled away. "In the training room."

"Okay." She nodded, still tingling from the heated kiss they had shared a moment before. She sat still as Eric stood, fingers trailing over her own lips as the man walked away from her.

Ana sat, her legs still dangling over the chasm as she thought of what just happened. Her hands moved to her hair as she let out a disbelieved gasp. She had just kissed her leader! She had asked him to kiss her.

And he did.

And it was wonderful.

She giggled to herself for a moment, but stopped after a moment as she looked around. Ana knew she looked like a fool and she didn't want anyone to see her looking like a lovestruck teenager.

So she cleared her throat and stood up, smoothing her clothes out as she did. As she walked back to her rooms, she tried her very best to contain the overwhelming joy building inside her.

*

The next day, Ana and Tris sat at a table in the Pit. Al was no where to be found and Christina and Will were finding any excuse they could to be alone. Ana pushed her food around absentmindedly, not noticing the look that her friend was giving her.

"You've been pretty quiet lately." Tris gave her a pointed stare. "Is something wrong?"

Ana's face began to heat up. All she had thought about was Eric and the way that he kissed her. She thought about her upcoming meeting with him and felt her stomach jump. But she managed to put on a straight face as she answered Tris. "Nothing's wrong. Just tired, I guess."

Tris hummed, and Ana knew that her friend didn't believe her. The two finished their dinners quickly and began to make their way out of the Pit. Tomorrow was the day that they would face their final fear landscapes, making it their last official day of initiation. Ana was excited that she was almost done facing her fears.