“Caleb?” Adriel called again. “I’m going to leave you alone now, but first I want to know you’re truly all right by yourself in there. Do you want me to get Benji?”
“No!” I shouted. The floodgates opened, and I blurted out, “I don’t want Benji, I wantyou!”
I should have been ashamed. I should have felt even a tiny scrap of shame. But I didn’t. My heat was too far gone for that.
Now that I said it, there was no taking it back. The words hung out in the open.
The doorknob rattled, like Adriel placed his hand on it.
“Caleb,” he said in a low voice. “Tell me the truth. Is it you speaking, or your hormones?”
I winced.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Both. No, I don’t know. I can’t tell right now.”
I couldn’t keep my stupid mouth shut. If I kept talking like this, I knew I would chase him away.
“May I come in?” Adriel asked. “If you’re not comfortable, say no.”
I thought about it for a second. Even if he were in front of me, it wasn’t like I was gonna jump on him. I just needed something to break this tension. “Yeah, it’s fine.”
Adriel entered the room and left the door half open behind him. He watched me warily. Something glinted behind his eyes, a strange emotion I couldn’t read.
“What do you want?” Adriel asked. “Tell me honestly. Don’t hold anything back.”
“I want you,” I repeated. The throbbing below my stomach grew stronger. “It’s driving me crazy.”
Adriel stiffly crossed his arms. He didn’t come any closer, but his sharp gaze never strayed from me.
“Do youneedthis?” he asked.
My heart skipped a beat. Was he asking what I thought he was asking? Had my brain been fried by the jump in temperature so that I was hallucinating now?
“Answer me,” Adriel demanded.
“Yes,” I said without hesitation. “I need… something. Inside me.”
He slowly arched a brow. “Then let me ask you something else. Do you have a condom?”
My eyes widened. “Yes! Yes, I do!” I cried, probably more enthusiastically than I should have.
Adriel ran his hand through his silky black hair. He remained where he was, still hesitant. “We can tell no one of this. Do you agree?”
I nodded vigorously.
“Then…” He paused, then opened up his palm. “Give it to me.”
My heart raced. My gut was full of butterflies trying to escape. I ran to my bedside, snatched the jeans and fished the condom out of the pocket, all while sending a silent mental prayer to Dr. Lopez who insisted I go home with the condoms.
I guess he was right about me needing them, in the end…
I returned to Adriel and placed the condom gently in his outstretched palm. He curled his fingers around it and, never breaking eye contact with me, he unwrapped it.
My throat tightened and my heart raced. I felt frozen to the spot, like I was under some kind of spell. I’d fantasized about this moment countless times, and now that it was finally happening, I could barely stand to breathe in case I shattered it and fell back into reality.
Adriel stepped closer, looming above me. The scent of his silky black hair, both floral and masculine, floated over to me. I watched his own nostrils flare at the overwhelming scent of my heat, which I could detect easily even though it came from my own body.
If he was having trouble controlling himself, he didn’t show it at all - except maybe a tightened jaw.
