He pushed off the doorframe and stepped into my room. Into my space. Closing the door behind him with a soft click that sounded impossibly loud inthe silence.
"Kai—"
"I said we need to talk, Aria."
The way he said my name made my stomach flip. Like it was something intimate. Something that belonged only to him.
I backed up instinctively. He followed. This was bad. Really bad. Because part of me—a significant, treacherous part—didn't want him to leave.
"There's nothing to talk about. That night was a mistake. We were drunk, I was grieving, it shouldn't have happened."
He stopped moving. Looked at me like I'd just said the stupidest thing he'd ever heard.
"A mistake."
"Yes. A mistake. One we both need to forget about immediately because—"
"That night was a lot of things, Aria. Reckless? Yes. Irresponsible? Absolutely. The best sex I've ever had in my life? Without question." He moved closer, his eyes burning into mine. "But a mistake? No. That's the one thing it wasn't."
My breath caught. He kept coming, slow and deliberate, backing me up until my spine hit the wall.
"I've been thinking about you for two weeks straight. Couldn't get you out of my head. Your taste. Your sounds. The way you felt wrapped around me." His voice dropped lower. "And now you're here. In my house. And you think we're just going to pretend none of that happened?"
"I'm supposed to marry your father." The words came out desperate. Panicked. "You're going to be my stepson. This is insane. We can't—we can't do this."
His expression went dark. Dangerous. Something flickered in his eyes that made my heart race for entirely different reasons.
"My father isn't touching you."
The certainty in his voice was absolute. Final.
"Ever."
"That's not your decision—"
"You belong to me, Aria."
The words hung between us, heavy and possessive and completely inappropriate.
"That night proved it. I was your first. That means something. Whether you want to admit it or not, you're mine."
I was backed against the wall now, trapped between expensive wallpaper and a man who looked at me like I was already his. Kai was right in front of me, close enough that I could feel his body heat, smell whatever cologne he was wearing mixed with something darker. Him.
He wasn't touching me. But somehow that made it worse. The anticipation. The tension crackling between us.
"You're crazy." My voice shook. "This will get us both killed. Your father will—"
"I don't give a fuck what my father will do."
The bluntness of it shocked me silent.
"You think I care about his threats? His rules? His plans?" Kai's hand came up, fingers brushing my cheek so gently it made me shiver. "I'm going to be watching you every single day. Spending time with you. Getting to know you. And you're going to stop fighting this thing between us because it's not going away."
"No." I forced the word out. "I won't do this. I can't."
"Can't or won't?"
"Both. Neither. It doesn't matter." I pressed harder against the wall, trying to create distance that didn't exist. "You need to leave. Now. Before someone sees you here."
