We’re Dishing First Kisses with Roxanne Snopek

There’s nothing like a first kiss, is there? One of my favorites romantic scenes to write is between Celia and Jonah from Resisting the Rancher. It was inspired by the song (Kissed You) Good Night by Gloriana.

Here’s the scene:

Jonah stood in front of her, his hand raised, his face wild in the stark yard light, his breath rasping in his throat. Their gazes locked instantly. Slowly he lowered his hand, as if unsure what to do with it. She felt something vital trip inside her, a hard reset that knocked out all her defaults.

If the seconds had yawned before, now they slipped into a coma. Blood pulsed inside her head, behind her ears, yet above the deafening sound, she could still hear the distant cry of a hawk, high above them. Sweet night air, heavy with alfalfa and clover, rode inside as she took a step back. Something hot and salty stung the back of her throat. Her usual self-deprecating laugh caught like a fish in the net of her throat, morphed into something else, as if her language center had been taken over along with her lungs, leaving her voiceless but for this one small, hideous, inarticulate sound.

Celia had dreamed of this moment for so long and now, it was as if time wanted to do justice by stretching it out as long as possible.

And instead of enjoying it, she was watching spots swirl in the periphery of her vision, while those hitching, keening sounds kept leaping out of her.

Jonah’s expression softened.

“Celia,” he whispered. And then he closed the distance between them, and he was there, all of him, against her, warm, trembling, real, and so there, finally, in the flesh.

She clung to him as if he was her only chance for life and breath, as if there’d never been anything else between them but this sweet, frantic desperation. Her legs buckled, but he held her, one thigh between hers, taking her weight, one hand pressing low on her back, the other higher, now on her neck, now on her cheek, now in her hair. Gravity didn’t work, nor physics—every law governing her world had been upended, suspended, transformed, reborn.

Behind her lids, she saw colors more vibrant and dazzling than anything she’d ever seen. She heard the rushing of a million waterfalls, celebrating life and everything good in the world.

She heard Jonah groan.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered.

But he did. He dropped his head, still leaning on his forearms, bracing himself on the wall, keeping her pinned against him, a place she’d happily stay the rest of her days.

“I don’t know what this is, Celia,” he muttered.

“Don’t think,” she begged. “Don’t analyze, don’t deconstruct or measure or interpret. Just kiss me.”

She drew him tight against her, aware that he was teetering on the brink of leaving. But he didn’t resist. She wound her hands into his hair, luxuriating in its softness. With her lips, she explored his mouth, then his cheeks, then his temple, his neck.

She felt his hands gripping her, moving over her body, at first frantic, then more softly, tenderly, gently. Finally, he moved away, smiled and she knew it was over. He touched her chin with his finger and thumb, tipped it up and pressed one more kiss against her lips.

“There,” he said softly, his eyes shining into hers. “Now we’ve said good night.”’

And here’s the link to the music video: https://youtu.be/rzMQu4zTtK8.

The line at the end “half scared to death” gets me every time. Because that’s it, isn’t it? The sheer terror, the risk of putting ourselves out there and then the joy of being seen and accepted and loved back… well, that’s why I write the stories I do. Because love is always worth it. Happy reading, my friends!

Check out all of Roxanne’s Bliss titles that are on sale at just 99¢ for a limited time only!

She’s his best friend’s sister, but he’s ready to break all the rules…

Country veterinarian Celia Gamble is in trouble. A misunderstanding from her past is rearing its ugly head and the only person she can turn to is Jonah Clarke—her family’s lawyer and, as it turns out, her brother Zach’s best friend and her childhood crush. She always wanted Jonah to see her as a bona fide woman, but as a woman who’s being wrongfully blackmailed for seducing a married man? Not on her life.

Jonah is happy to help little CeeCee Gamble, if only she’d come clean about why she’s being blackmailed. But with Zach’s wedding on the horizon and Zach’s fashionista fiancée Desiree giving CeeCee a makeover, the little duckling Jonah remembers is turning into a definite swan. And the unwritten law on sisters is clear—hands off.

Jonah must resist Celia or lose the only true family he’s ever known.