She laughed, breathless, shaking her head as she leaned back.
“You’re impossible.”
“And yet…” His eyes dipped again—mouth, neck, legs. “You’re here.”
Her grin was slow. Satisfied. “Or maybe I like a challenge.”
He leaned in, his breath brushing past her cheek, close enough to feel, but not quite touch.
“Then buckle up.”
CHAPTER 46
Reckless Devotion
The drive back into the city passed in a quiet blur, but the silence wasn’t empty. It hummed, alive and electric, with everything unspoken.
Arden rested her temple against the window, the glass cool against her skin. Outside, the city unfurled in golden blurs’ each flash of light slipped over her reflection. She took the time to appraise him—profile rigid, jaw set, hands gripping the wheel. He didn’t look at her once. Didn’t dare.
When they finally pulled into the garage beneath his brownstone, the Roadster settled with a low purr, its last rumble fading like a held breath.
Gideon cut the engine. Neither of them moved.
Then, slowly, he turned to her. The storm in his eyes was quiet now—steady, but it carried promise.
“Still think the car is sexier?” His voice was low, edged with something darker.
She tried to smirk, bold and flippant, but it cracked under the heat of his stare.
The space between them had tightened to a breath.
“I don’t know…” She lifted a shoulder, casual. “It’s close.”
His jaw flexed. Just once.
A warning.
Then he was out of the car.
She barely had time to track him before he was there, rounding the hood with that quiet, coiled stride she’d learned to recognize. He opened her door without a word, offering his hand like a man who knew she’d take it.
“I still think can tilt things in my favor.” he said, voice rough, threaded with the control he was barely keeping.
Inside,the brownstone welcomed them with a hush, familiar and expectant.
Arden slipped out of her coat, the fabric whispering down her arms before pooling over the armrest in a soft, deliberate fall.
When she turned, he was there.
No rush.
No hesitation.
Just Gideon, closing the space between them like gravity had decided.
“You know,” he said, voice low, teasing, but anchored. “I’ve been patient.”
The wordpatientlanded like a spark.
