Something softens in his features when I say his name, and that feeling, that I’m the one who melts that hard exterior of his, puts a strange warmth in my chest.
“You need money.”
It’s not a question, it’s a statement, and even though I could deny it, I don’t see why I should. I’m not ashamed of our financial situation. We’re not poor, but money was never something we had to spare.
Lupe worked over the summers and always covered nights out when I ran low,tíoFelipe worked overtime to cover his share of the scholarship fund, so now it’s my turn to help however I can.
“You know he doesn’t just want tutoring, Amalia,” he says, and I catch the indignation in his voice.
I almost choke on my drink, and I have to press my lips together to keep the laugh from spilling out.
“Be serious, trust me when I say nobody wants a girl who knows limits and derivatives.”
His entire body goes stiff beside me, and he says through his teeth, “I do. And trust me when I say you don’t see the way he analyzes your body, the way those blouses outline your waist, or the way your lips ask to be kissed after every single smile. You don’t see how his eyes catch on your hair, on every strand, like his hands are itching to reach out and touch. And fuck, Amalia,” his hands curl into fists at his sides, “there isn’t a formula on this earth that could replicate you.”
“Silas...”
He takes the hot chocolate from my hands and sets it on the table while his face draws closer to mine.
“Tell me what you need to stop tutoring that idiot.”
“It’s not about?—”
He draws a slow breath and says, “Name your price, Amalia.”
“I need a lapt?—”
“Done. Latest generation. With all the necessary programs installed and licenses for anything else you might need.”
“And a Raspberry Pi 4 kit?—”
“Just tell me the brand.”
“Newtonstein,” I whisper, laughing without meaning to at how completely determined he is.
His eyes hold that same wonder and reverence when they look at my mouth, the butterflies in my stomach waking up and taking flight in swarms when I see it.
“I want one more thing,” I tell him quietly.
With his eyes still fixed on my lips, his hands settle at the base of my neck, his thumb tracing slow, deliberate circles against my skin, and he answers.
“Anything.”
Euclid, protect me, what this man does to me.
“Kiss me, Silas.”
I don’t know where this boldness comes from. The old Amalia is clearly passed out in some corner of my mind, because I can feel the other one making herself known in every cell of my body.
Because I denied myself so many things during my life, but now the woman in me is telling me to stop thinking so much and just feel.
Our lips meet, soft and careful, like a question neither of us has the words for yet. A shiver breaks across my skin because there’s something almost tentative in the way he approaches, his mouth barely grazing mine at first as if he’s afraid I’ll run, as if he’s giving me every chance to pull away.
I put my hands over his and deepen the kiss instead, tilting into him, because I don’t know how long I’ll have this, I don’t know if it’s going to last, but right now, in this moment, I want to memorize every second. The warmth of his mouth, the steadiness of his hands, the way he kisses me like I’m something worth being careful with.
Because Silas Vaughn is the most interesting man I’ve ever met, and for reasons I still don’t fully understand, he’s drawn to me.
His fingers apply a gentle pressure at my neck, and when his tongue finally meets mine, slowly and deliberately, I can’t hold back a soft sound of satisfaction.
