I sucked on her tongue gently, then traced the seam of her lips with the tip of mine. She gasped, giving me access to deepen the kiss further.
Our kisses grew more urgent, more passionate. I bit down on her lower lip, tugging gently. Colette gasped, her hips lifting to grind against mine. I groaned into her mouth, my hands gripping her thighs tightly.
Our breaths mingled, coming in short pants and soft moans.The kiss was messy and desperate, a clash of teeth and tongues as we devoured each other.
I broke away to trail kisses along her jawline, nipping at the sensitive skin of her throat. She tilted her head back, giving me better access as she panted heavily. “Silas,” she breathed, “please…”
As we kissed, my hands roamed her body, caressing every curve and contour. I palmed her breasts, squeezing gently as my thumbs brushed over her hardened nipples. Colette gasped into my mouth, arching into my touch.
Her head fell back, chest heaving as she panted heavily. “Silas,” she breathed, “that feels so good…”
I pulled back from her, my own breaths coming in pants as I closed my eyes.
Her body was warm and slick against mine, her legs wrapped around my hips beneath the water, her fingers tracing slow, devastating shapes over my shoulders. She rested her forehead against mine, breaths shallow and shivery, every inch of her like a live wire against my skin.
I slid my palms up the curve of her spine, stopping just shy of her nape. She melted into the touch, tipping her head back just a little, letting me look —really look— at her. At her flushed cheeks, at her parted lips, at the softness in those eyes that just wrecked me.
God, I wanted her. I wanted every part of her. But something deep in my ribs tugged — an ache not of desire, but of care. Of need, yes, but not justneed.
I swallowed, my voice rough when I finally spoke. “Colette.”
She blinked, still dazed from the slow grind of closeness, like she barely registered her name on my tongue.
I shifted my hold, one hand rising to her cheek, thumb brushing just under her eye. “I want you more than I’ve wanted anything in a long time,” I murmured. “But I need to know…”
Her gaze sharpened, caught in a delicate balance between want and wonder.
“Are you ready? Really ready?” I asked, voice low, steady. “For this. For me.”
The water stilled around us. Her fingers trailed down my chest and landed over my heart. The silence wasn’t heavy — it was… sacred.
Her lips curved, not in teasing, but with something tender.
Something real.
CHAPTER 28
Colette
The question shouldn't have surprisedme.
Not really.
But it did.
Maybe because no one had ever asked me something like that before. Not with that kind of care — not withweightbehind it. Not when I was half-naked and tangled up with them and already too far gone to pretend I wasn’t.
Silas wasn’t pretending. He was looking at me like I was worth waiting for. Worth choosing. Worth every soft breath between us.
My throat felt tight. I didn’t pull back from him — couldn’t, really — but I let my hands still against his chest, feeling the steady, careful beat beneath my palm.
“I thought I was,” I whispered, though the words felt like they came from some younger, scared version of me. The one who never got picked. The one who always wonderedwhy not me.
His thumb stroked the side of my jaw. Slow, patient.
Devastating.
“And now?” he murmured.
