Evaline:
There was no voice in my head warning me to stop. No whisper of guilt. No lingering hesitation.
There was just Draven, and the heat of his mouth on mine. There was the way his arms held me, possessive and trembling, like letting go would tear something inside him.
My body, my soul, and the mate bond that connected us were singing at his touch. Singing. Thriving.
Every inch of me was feeling more alive than it had... in forever.
And he must have felt the same, because he kissed me like I was the only thing tethering him to reality. Like he was drowning, and I was the only air he knew.
His hands were careful as they roamed over me, his each movement lighting fire under my skin. His mouth devoured mine again and again, and I gave myself up to him fully. My body melted against his, and my hand clutched his shoulder, desperate for more of this, more of him.
We kissed like we were starved. Like we had been dying of thirst and finally found water.
I barely even realized how long we had been at it... until I gasped, out loud, at the sudden sensation of his hand slipping beneath the hem of my blouse and brushing against the bare skin of my lower back.
And he froze.
His lips stopped moving and his body turned still. I heard his breath hitching.
And just like that, the mood shifted.
"I-" he started, breathless, his voice was thick with a tangle of emotions. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-shit-I shouldn’t have-"
He was already starting to move me off his lap. The guilt and panic were flooding his eyes. But before he could have shifted me away, I reached out and cupped his face, stopping him.
"Wait." My voice was quiet, but steady. Clear.
His eyes found mine. He was looking stunned, unsure, as though I had said something in a foreign language.
So I repeated it. Slowly this time, because I needed him to hear me.
"What if... I want this?"
He blinked.
Confusion flickered first in his eyes. Then disbelief. He didn’t say a word, just stared like I had knocked all the air out of his lungs. My cheeks turned red, and a part of me screamed to take it back, to soften it. But I didn’t.
I didn’t want to lie to him, or myself.
"I mean..." I swallowed, gathering the pieces of my courage and pushing them to the surface. "Not sex. Not... everything. But... more than just kissing. I-I don’t want us to stop yet. I want you."
The words left my lips before I could filter them. And the moment they did, I wanted to bury my face in his chest and never come out again. What was I thinking?
There were so many unspoken things between us still. So many questions unanswered. And here I was, acting like everything was alright.
But still, even in my embarrassment... I didn’t regret it. At least I had told him the truth.
He didn’t move, didn’t speak, didn’t blink.
Seconds were passing like hours, and I was beginning to regret my choice as the feeling of dread started wrapping around my spine.
I was about to climb off him, pretend it never happened, when his hands gripped my waist gently and he tilted my face up with his fingers holding my chin.
His eyes weren’t angry. Or judgmental. Or even conflicted. Instead, they were... soft. Aching. Deep.
"I’ll give you whatever you want," he whispered. "Because that’s what mates do, Eva. They give. They care. They... love."
My heart flipped.
"But-" his voice cracked slightly. "You need to understand something."
I nodded slowly, afraid of what he might say.
"I still don’t know how I feel about the child."
There. It was out. And it stung... even though I had been expecting it.
His gaze dropped for a moment. "I’m not saying I won’t come around. I’m trying. I want to. But right now, I don’t want to lie to you. I love you. You are my mate. You are my everything. But I’m not ready to accept the baby... not yet."
His honesty didn’t wound me the way I had been fearing. Because he wasn’t cruel. He wasn’t cold. He was just... normal. Struggling.
And maybe that was enough for now.
"I’ll wait," I said softly.
He looked up sharply.
"I mean it," I continued. "I know it’s not easy. And I’m not going to push you. You don’t owe me or the baby anything just because you are my mate. You have every right to take your time. To decide what you want."
He opened his mouth, maybe to argue, but I leaned forward and rested my forehead against his.
"I’m not asking for a promise you can’t make," I whispered. "I just want... you."
The sound he made next was more like a groan than a sigh.
Then he kissed me.
And this time... he didn’t hold back.
His mouth crashed into mine like a wave - intense, deep, hungry. All the control he had clung to before? It was gone. And in its place was pure, raw desire.
He kissed me like I was his entire world.
His hands started roaming again - this time boldly, possessively. He gripped my hips tighter, pulled me flush against his chest. Our breaths mingled, sharp and uneven.
He ended the kiss moments later only to trail his lips down my jaw, then to my throat where he kissed, nipped, and left a clear mark that I was going to struggle to hide later.
I gasped when his teeth grazed that sensitive spot just under my ear.
"Draven..." I moaned.
He shuddered at the sound, pressing his lips into the curve of my neck. "You have no idea what you do to me..."
I clung to him, arching into every touch. His hands slid up beneath my blouse again, and this time, he didn’t stop. He didn’t hesitate. Slowly, his fingers trailed along my waist, my ribcage, and higher until...