Page 53 of Sticks & Serpents

I reached out then—not aggressively but carefully—as if touching her would shatter whatever tenuous balance we had left. My fingers grazed her wrist lightly, where that guy had grabbed her earlier.

“You’re mine,” I whispered, leaning closer until our faces nearly touched. The weight of everything we had danced around hung heavy in the air between us.

And even though every instinct told me to back off—to let this play out without forcing it—I couldn't do it. Not when she stood there looking so damn conflicted and alive.

Not when I knew deep down that she felt this too.

I moved before I could stop myself. One moment, I was locked in her gaze, a whirlwind of anger and desire coursing through me. The next, I slammed my hands against the wall on either side of her head, caging her in. The sound echoed in the small space, drowning out everything else.

Holly gasped, surprise flashing across her face. But she didn’t push me away. Instead, she stayed rooted to the spot, eyes wide and vulnerable as she stared up at me.

“Tell me to leave,” I demanded, my voice low and dark, a challenge wrapped in something primal.

Her lips parted, but no words came out. The silence stretched between us like an unspoken truth. She couldn’t say it—not now. Not when everything we’d danced around hung heavy in the air.

I leaned closer, my breath mingling with hers as I pressed myself into her space. The heat radiating from her body pulled me in deeper, every nerve ending screaming for contact—any contact—while my mind wrestled with the chaos inside me.

“Say it,” I urged again, forcing the words past my clenched jaw. “Just tell me to fuck off.”

But she remained silent, caught somewhere between fear and something else—something that made her hesitate.

A part of me wanted to shake her until she spoke; another part craved this tension, this moment suspended in time where everything else faded away and it was just us.

Her heart raced against mine; I could feel it—a frantic rhythm that matched the turmoil inside my chest. And damn if that didn’t make me want to break down every barrier she'd built since the last time we were together.

I leaned even closer until our noses almost touched, daring her to breathe too deeply. “You know you don’t want me to go.” The words slipped from my mouth like poison and honey all at once.

In that moment, trapped between my body and the wall behind her, I saw a flicker of uncertainty dance across her features—a small crack in her resolve that ignited a fire within me. She didn’t push me away; she held her breath instead, waiting for whatever came next.

I felt the warmth of her skin under my fingers as I grazed her jaw, tilting her chin up to meet my gaze. Her breath hitched, and I couldn’t help but smirk at the way she tried to hold onto that defiance, even when everything about her body betrayed the truth.

With my other hand, I slid down to her hip, fingers flexing over the soft fabric of her dress. It was a gentle hold, but the possessiveness was there—an unspoken promise that she was mine and no one else’s.

“This is your last chance, little lamb,” I whispered against her lips, my voice low and dark. The words hung in the air between us like a challenge.

Her hands fisted in my shirt, tension radiating from her as if she were torn between pushing me away and pulling me closer. I could feel the struggle within her; every fiber of her being waged war with itself. But even in that moment of hesitation, something shifted.

She rose onto her toes, closing the distance between us completely. Time slowed as our breaths mingled—each second stretched into eternity—until finally, she kissed me first.

It was a jolt to my system. Her lips brushed against mine with a heat that ignited everything inside me. All at once, all those walls we’d built crumbled into dust. There was no hesitation in this kiss; it was raw and desperate—a hunger we had both denied for far too long.

I responded instinctively, deepening the kiss as I pulled her closer. My grip on her hip tightened, anchoring her against me as if I could keep her from slipping away again. Her body pressed into mine like it belonged there, fitting perfectly into the chaos we had created together.

Every doubt faded into oblivion as I lost myself in the taste of her—sweet and intoxicating—like nothing else mattered beyond this moment. We were two forces colliding, breaking through every barrier we’d erected around our hearts.

In that electrifying connection, I felt alive—powerful—and utterly consumed by everything Holly stirred within me.

The kiss was raw, messy, brutal. All teeth and desperation, a collision of anger and need that ignited something primal within me. I had fought against this moment for too long, and now that it was here, it felt like a wildfire consuming everything in its path.

Holly’s lips crashed against mine again, fierce and hungry. I could taste the sweet tang of her resolve melting away as she leaned into me, body pressed against the wall like she belonged there. She bit my lip hard enough to draw blood, and I groaned into her mouth—a sound that came from both pleasure and pain.

With a surge of need, I pressed her harder against the wall, pinning her there as if I could claim every part of her. I wanted her to feel how fucking hard I was for her, always for her. My hands roamed instinctively, gripping her hips with enough force to leave marks while my fingers slid beneath the soft fabric of her dress. I could feel the warmth of her skin beneath my fingertips, sending jolts of electricity through me.

She gasped when I pulled her closer, our bodies melding together as if we were two pieces meant to fit perfectly. The way she responded fueled the fire raging inside me; it was intoxicating—this dance of dominance and submission between us.

I wanted more. Every instinct urged me to take control completely, to erase any remnants of hesitation from her mind. My hands explored her body greedily, mapping out every curve and angle as if I were an artist painting on a canvas. The sensation of her breath hitching when my fingers brushed over the sensitive skin at the small of her back made my pulse race.

“Fuck, Holly,” I murmured against her lips as our mouths moved in frantic rhythm. “You have no idea what you do to me.”

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