Page 70 of Goldrage
I groan. He’s being so controlled that I worry he wouldn’t take the bait.
Adrian’s smile is soft. “Tell me about your day. How was it?”
“Well, Julian won’t return my phone so all I can do is read, write, or wander the gardens. Today was just that. Trying not to lose my mind from boredom.” I tilt my head, returning his smile. “And I think about you all the time.”
My words are a challenge, and I watch as he leans forward in his chair, eyes darkening with that familiar hunger that makes my knees weak.
“Then our days are the same. I’m constantly thinking of you.”
I slide off the bed, drawn to him like a magnet. We’re playing with fire, but God, I need the burn.
“Is that so?” I say. “Do you spend your time imagining what you’d do if these walls weren’t watching?”
His jaw tightens. “Aurelia…”
“What?” I’m close enough now to see when he takes a hard swallow. “Tell me you don’t lie awake thinking about us.”
“Every damn second.”
I reach out, fingertips barely grazing his bare chest. He catches my wrist but doesn’t push me away. Instead, his thumb traces circles on my pulse point, and I swear he can feel how my heart races at his touch.
“The way you looked at dinner tonight…” I lean closer, close enough that my breath ghosts across his jaw. “Like you wanted to devour me right there at the table. That was a risky look.”
His other hand comes up to cup my face, thumb brushing across my cheekbone with devastating gentleness. “You have no idea the restraint it takes. Watching you across that room, knowing I can’t?—”
“Can’t what?” I turn my head slightly, lips almost brushing his palm. “Touch me? Kiss me? Make me forget everything but your name?”
He groans, fingers sliding into my hair. We’re so close now I can feel the heat radiating from his body. I smell the faint trace of his soap.
His free hand finds the emerald necklace, fingers tracing the stones. “I’m happy you’re keeping this safe.”
“It’s the only piece of you I was allowed to keep.”
“Aurelia…” His hand tightens in my hair, tilting my face up to his. “You’re going to be the death of me.”
“What a way to go,” I whisper against his mouth, so close I can taste his breath.
God, just kiss me. Fuck this agreement.
The last thread of his control snaps. His lips brush mine in a kiss so light it’s barely there. Yet somehow it burns hotter than anything else could. I make a small sound of need, pressing closer.
“I thought we agreed to wait,” I tease, though my body screams in protest at the distance. Honestly, I’m savoring this—the power to draw him in, to make him lose that iron control of his. The separation has been madness, and I need him to break. Need us both to shatter and rebuild in the wreckage.
But my words work too well, like I’ve thrown cold water on him. Adrian steps back, leaving my body icy and aching in his absence.
“Yes,” he says in a neutral tone. “I thought so too.”
I blink at the sudden shift, confusion replacing my arousal. “Adrian?”
He turns back to the window and his shoulders are rigid with tension again. “When you snuck in here last night… that was too big of a risk. I don’t understand your reasoning.”
I blink again, harder this time, trying to process his words. “What are you talking about?”
His brow furrows as he studies my face in the moonlight. “Don’t play games. You were very… enthusiastic about repaying me for last time.”
Irritation begins to flare, mixing unpleasantly withmy lingering desire. I shake my head. “What? I was in my room all night. I never left except to get a snack. So what are you talking about? Did you take some medication before bed and?—”
He sighs like I’m disappointing him, and that sound ignites my temper. “I’m not upset, only concerned,” he says. “You could’ve gotten caught. I presume you had Valentine turn off the cameras, but it’s still a risk. Right now, everything is a risk. So moving forward we must only meet when it’s absolutely necessary for our plans.” He returns to me, taking my shoulders gently. “This separation is difficult, and I want nothing more than to pull you against me whenever you’re near, but we must be strong. We’re so close to?—”
