Page 165 of Untamed

My hand slides down from her mouth, tracing her jaw, her throat, until it rests just above the collarbone.

“Ares...” she whispers, eyes wide as she stares up at me. “How did you get in here?”

I smirk, low and slow. “Did you really think a couple guards and a locked door could keep me out, bambina?”

I lean in, brushing my nose against hers.

“If I want in, nothing stops me.”

She doesn’t move. Doesn’t speak.

Just stares up at me like I’ve stolen all the air from the room.

I lower my head so we’re at eye level and I let my fingers trace down the curve of her arm until they find the hem of her nightdress. My voice drops to a rasp.

“What if someone saw you?” she breathes.

I smirk against her skin, my lips trailing just beneath her ear. “They didn’t.”

I pause, low, deliberate. “Shadow moves for me, bambina. I don’t get caught... not unless I want to be.”

Her throat bobs. “You truly are an enigma, Ares Russo.”

A low hum leaves me as I trace the line of her jaw with my knuckles. “That what I am to you? A mystery?”

She nods slowly, gaze flickering to my mouth. “A beautiful and untamed mystery.”

Ah, Fuck.

The way she says it, soft, breathless, it wrecks me in ways I’ll never say aloud.

I lean in, close enough that our mouths almost touch. “Then figure me out, bambina. I won’t stop you.”

My hand slides up, curling gently around the back of her neck. I pull her forward just enough to feel her breath catch.

“I want you to know every inch of me,” I murmur. “Even the parts I’ve buried. The parts no one’s ever touched.”

She exhales like she’s drowning in the weight of my words. Like she wants to sink deeper.

I push her hair behind her ear, fingers lingering. “But be sure, Jordyn... once you know me, really know me, you’ll never be able to walk away.”

Her lips part.

I don’t give her the chance to respond.

I kiss her, slow, deep, possessive. Like I’m imprinting something into her soul. Her hands slide up my chest, fingers curling into the fabric of my vest like she needs something to anchor her.

She kisses me back like she’s starving.

And maybe she is.

Maybe we both are.

I break the kiss just long enough to whisper against her lips. “You’re in my blood now. And I don’t let go of what’s mine.”

“Good, because there is no part of me that wants you to let me go.” She breathes, reaching up and brushing her thumb over my lips. “I just hate that I can’t come to you whenever I want to. I hate that I left you waiting.”

“I know, I wasn’t angry, Jordyn. Just… restless. Like something in me doesn’t know how to settle when you’re not near.”

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