Page 155 of Cerulean Truth
Maurice nodded slowly. “I’ll discuss it with Maria. If she’s on board, we’ll follow your suggestion.”
The next few hours were dedicated to recounting the events of the past few months, from Emma’s arrival to the revelation of her non-existent tracking—which I hated sharing with him. We talked about the Radicals and Resistants, and he enlightened uson the dangers of magi fighting other magi, drawing from his experiences as a survivor of the Battle of ‘59.Brag much?
To my satisfaction, we refrained from revealing anything about the mysterious “he” we knew nothing about, the existence of a mole or the attempted "blood theft" on the night of the reception.
Since Emma herself wasn't privy to any of that, it seemed entirely wrong to share this information with a third party anyway.
As the meeting concluded, the darkness outside matched my exhaustion. All I yearned for was to find Emma, to kiss her and to make sure this newcomer hadn't changed anything between us.
I tried nexing her but she didn’t answer.
"Goodnight, James," Julian smiled as we walked out together. I offered a brief nod, acknowledging his presence without reciprocating his sentiment.
Trying Emma's contact again yielded no response. My patience waned, and a moment later, I portaled to the Universitas.
Standing in front of her dorm, I realized I was possibly acting petty and jealous, behaving like an insecure boyfriend. But I couldn't care less; I had to see her.
I knocked on her door, and when she didn't respond immediately, I forced her door open. I wasthatdesperate to talk to her.
When her room was revealed as empty, red-hot anger and frustration burst within me, and I had to take a few deep breaths before closing the door again.
"James?"
I quickly turned around and saw her approaching the room, sweaty and in her training outfit, clearly coming straight from the training room. I was extremely relieved and happy to see her,especially without a certain old individual. I closed the distance between us in two large strides.
"What are you..." I cut her off, slamming my lips onto hers.
I kissed her fervently, right then and there in the hallway, not caring about anything else but the feeling of her soft body against mine.
My kiss was rough, a claim, marking her as irrevocably mine. The tremors that coursed through my body when our lips met were overwhelming. It felt like an electric charge shooting through me, every nerve ending exploding with sensation. My hands gripped her tighter as I pulled her closer, the intensity of our connection only growing. The vibrations caused by our kiss sent me into a state of excitement I had never experienced before.
I pressed harder, nudging her lips to part with a demanding swipe of my tongue. She yielded, and I delved in, our tongues colliding with unfiltered hunger.
The scent of her, the taste of her and the feel of her were fucking intoxicating. She matched my fervor, meeting my every move with equal passion. My hands roamed her body feverishly, wanting to feel her every curve, every inch.
Closer. I need her closer.
Her fingers glided frantically through my hair, and I pushed her against the nearest wall I could find, my body shielding hers completely. She moaned softly into my mouth, and the sound shot through me like gasoline to a fire, making me groan in response, making me nearly lose my shit.
Fuck, I needed her more than I needed air to breathe—my mind racing with every way I’d make her mine if we weren’t in the middle of this hallway.
Realizing that if I didn’t stop now, I wouldn’t stop at all, I forced myself to pull back, the space between us feeling likea punishment. I released her slowly, still catching my breath, every part of me protesting the loss of contact.
Emma looked up at me, her chest rising and falling, and flashed a sly smile. "That was… unexpected. Very welcome…" She gave a playful wink. "…but unexpected."
I smirked in relief and winked back, feeling ten times lighter than I had all day. "Do you want to go to the Cube for a drink?" I asked, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
She raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Uhm, sure. Give me twenty minutes to shower and change?"
I nodded. Hell, I'd wait all night if need be.
"Take your time; I'll wait for you by the Touchstone."
She cocked her head, clearly considering something. "Why don't you...wait in my room? I can get ready in the bathroom and finish up in my lavatory..."
I raised a brow.Interesting.
"So we cantalk," she clarified, shaking her head, clearly reading me like a book.
