Page 18 of Bound By Crimson
She ached. Not emotionally. Not romantically. Physically.
Her body wanted friction. Her hips wanted his. And her mind was gone—just a fevered fog of craving.
He spun her—her back flush to his chest—and his hand slid boldly across her stomach, anchoring her against him. She felt his breath at her neck again, hotter now, like he was holding it back.
He wasn’t just dancing.
He was teasing. Promising. Controlling. And it was working.
She pressed back, just slightly—testing. He exhaled sharply, a sound low and possessive, like he was barely hanging on.
Her own breath caught in her throat.
She was soaked. She knew it. And she didn’t care.
No one had ever touched her like this. Hell—no one had even looked at her like this.
She didn’t know his name. But she would’ve let him take her right there.
When she opened her eyes again, she caught sight of them in a tall mirror near the ballroom’s edge—his dark silhouette wrapped around her, his face at her neck, her lips parted, her skin glowing.
She looked like someone else.
Someone powerful. Wanted. Desired.
For the first time in her life… she didn’t want to be anyone else.
The music slowed to its final note.
He didn’t loosen his hold. Instead, he leaned in close—his lips brushing the shell of her ear, and whispered:
“I’ll see you soon.”
But just before he said it—his hand reached up.
He tugged the red ribbon from around her neck.
It slipped loose, sliding across her skin like silk and sin. A part of her. A mark of her.
He let it fall.
Then his lips touched the place where it had been.
Not a kiss. A claim.
And then he was gone.
His touch vanished. His warmth disappeared. She spun around, breathless, frantic—but the crowd had swallowed him whole. He was nowhere.
The ballroom buzzed, but she heard nothing.
Her skin still tingled. Her thighs still trembled. Her body screamed for more.
She stood there, lost in candlelight and ache, drowning in the place where his body had touched hers—where he had made her feel like the most wanted thing in the world.
And now he was gone. Like a dream. Or a curse.
Chapter Five
