And it felt like she had.
Hektor followed her as she sat up, and for a moment, he could only stare. Her skin was still flushed, lips soft and pink from kissing, and along her collarbone were a couple of faint love bites placed sometime in the haze when he’d stopped thinking entirely. He brushed a thumb over one, and she angled her head to look.
“Oh wow, I like how that looks.”
He shook his head, half amused, half exasperated at himself.
“Hey,” she said, wagging a finger at him, “no kink shaming.”
He huffed a laugh. “We’ll see about that.”
She grinned, utterly unbothered. “Well…I’m definitely okay with staying in now.”
He slid his shirt over her; the fabric swallowed her completely, hanging off one shoulder, drowning her in white cotton, and somehow she still managed to look like sin wrapped in innocence.
“Really?” she said, tugging at the hem. “I can’t walk around naked?”
“No,” he grumbled, sounding far more territorial than he intended.
“Oh, okay,” she said with a teasing lilt. “I’ll give you a break.”
He pulled on his pants, still shaking his head at her, and asked what she wanted to do. She didn’t even hesitate, just grabbed his hand and tugged him back toward the media room.
“Log me into your network,” she said, handing him her phone and settling onto the sofa. The moment he did, she hit play on a movie.
He stared at the screen. “Why are we watching something with children in it?”
“Hektor,” she sighed dramatically, “they’re teenagers. Not that much younger than I am.”
He opened his mouth to argue, and she cut him off with, “Shut up and watch it,” before snuggling firmly into his side.
He tried to maintain his dignity by poking fun at the plot, the dialogue, the outfits, anything he could pick at. She elbowed him gently each time. And then insisted, “It’s cute, and it’s mine and my mom’s favorite movie.” A beat later, quieter: “She watched it when she was my age.”
That softened him instantly. He toned down the teasing, kept his arm around her, and, because he couldn’t help himself, watched her reactions more than the screen. The way she laughed, sighed, and muttered along with certain lines she clearly knew by heart.
He loved it. He loved her like this: warm, unguarded, fully tucked against him.
Hektor shook his head as the credits rolled, still pretending to be offended. “I can’t believe you made me watch a rom-com for teenagers.”
Zara twisted on the couch to look at him, eyes narrowed in playful accusation. “Oh, Icannotwith you. I saw you smiling. And laughing. Don’t even play dumb.”
He opened his mouth to deny it, but she was already moving, smooth, deliberate, sliding one knee over his lap and settling onto him like she’d done it a hundred times. Her hands braced on his shoulders, her hair falling forward around his face.
His breath caught.
“Oh,” she said lightly, nails skimming his stomach, “did the big bad Drakkon suffer? Want me to make you forget all about it?”
“Uh-huh,” he managed, voice dropping. “Yes, you will.”
Her answering smile was slow, wicked, and impossibly sweet all at once.
“Good,” she whispered, leaning in until her lips brushed his. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
Chapter 12
Zara
Zara sighed.
