I won’t.
“My intentions are unclear at the moment. Ask me after the lesson.”
He tilts his head, struggling to cover his grin as he leans in. My hands dig into the sheets, knuckles whitening as I lose myself in the depths of his blue eyes. The air grows thinner as we breathe each other in.
Silas looks down at me, mere inches separating us, like I’m a decision he’s already made.
“Tell me,” he murmurs. “That you know exactly what you’re doing to me.”
“I know what I do to you.” I smile softly but unashamed. “Are you trying to call my bluff? Waiting for me to back out?”
Something in him snaps, a switch that makes his gaze appear tender while his touch becomes a dangerous electrical current flaring through my body. His hand slides up my calf, steady and deliberate, causing my breath to stutter. He tracks every reaction like data he plans to use against me.
“You don’t bluff,” he states matter-of-factly. “You escalate.”
“And you follow,” I pop back.
“I will.” His mouth curves, dark and wicked. “Every time.”
Silas leans in, bracing one arm beside me, his weight a promise. His forehead rests briefly against mine, his breath warm and uneven.
“You make it very hard to be the responsible one,” he admits.
I tilt my chin, lips brushing his cheek. “Then don’t be.”
For a second, he just breathes with me. Against me. For me. Then his grip tightens, his mouth hovering above mine before he kisses me gently.
“Careful, Eris,” he warns, his voice dropping into something sinful but certain. “You keep daring me like this, and I won’t ever stop.”
My answer is immediate. “Good.”
Silas’s hand slides down my side, slow enough to make my skin buzz. His fingers hook into the waistband of my stolen shorts, and he pauses there, just long enough to make it a question.
I don’t answer in words. Instead, I lift my hips, inviting him to continue.
His mouth curves into an approving grin. He sits up and tugs at the fabric, pulling the shorts down my legs as he backs away from me. The last of my clothing is gone in one smooth motion, tossed aside like it never mattered. The cool air hits me, my body already reacting, missing his warmth.
I take advantage of the space he gives me, pushing myself up the bed again, a deliberate provocation. My smile is lazy, taunting.
That’s a mistake.
His grip snaps back around my ankle, and he drags me down hard, the sheets popping off the top corners of the mattress, rolling up beneath me. He shoves his fingers into my pussy, claiming my attention without warning.
The sound I make is not dignified.
Silas stiffens for half a second, just long enough to feel the way my body reacts. And he exhales harshly, like something feral has finally surfaced.
“Eris,” he admonishes, my name rough, scraped raw at the edges. “You don’t get to provoke me and then act surprised.”
“I’m not surprised,” I manage, voice trembling on a fine edge of desire. “I’m exactly where I want to be.”
His breath leaves him in a slow, unsteady exhale, like he’s balancing himself against what he’s already started. What he wants. His hand stays pinned between my thighs, keeping my attention in a way that makes my spine bow and my thoughts scatter.
“Don’t do that,” he says quietly. “Not if you want control.”
My pulse is everywhere. “Break for me.”
His fingers flex, deliberate and confident, as he reminds me exactly who’s holding the reins now. He leans over me, eyes dark, jaw tight, restraint still hanging by a thread.
