Page 70 of Ivory's Ruin Romance

Only after he heard her final decision would he be able to relax again. She hadn’t hinted at any doubts in their conversation last night, but he wanted to give her a proper chance to voice her thoughts. It’d be nearly impossible for her to require something he wasn’t willing to give, but regardless, she had to know she’d be equally capable of asking for her desires as he was his. And he did have a few.

He hadn’t done this before—started a real relationship. With all his previous arrangements, he’d known they would be temporary and made that abundantly clear. But with Ivory, he couldn’t see an end. Moreover, he didn’t want to. All he wished for was to keep that sweet smile on her face and be by her side to witness it.

Navigating the sleepy dormitory halls, he found her room number and softly rapped on the door. It opened by a crack, barely enough to see the side of her desk and an open wardrobe. Her voice came from the other side. “Adrian? Is that you?”

“Expecting someone else?”

She laughed. Hell, he’d never get over that sound. “No, but I did say the room was a mess, right? You can come in.”

He pushed the door open and stepped into what looked like a page from an object-search puzzle. Almost everything was some shade of purple, clothes and notebooks and pillows scattered around the tiny room. But his witch remained out of sight.

Closing the door, he pivoted until he saw her hidden in the corner…then nearly crumbled on the spot. Sweet and bashful and tempting as ever, she stood practically naked.

When she said she was getting dressed, he hadn’t expected this. Her porcelain skin contrasted perfectly with her dark purple hair and plain undergarments—and fuck those legs—one covered up to the knee by one of the sexiest boots he’d ever seen, the other in a simple black stocking. Her hands fidgeted at her side like she remembered too late to be embarrassed. A balance of innocence and seduction only she could pull off.

He swept his gaze back up her body and zeroed in on the ribbon tied around her neck. Like a collar. Like she wanted the world to know she belonged to someone—to him.

“Damn,” he whispered, reaching out to brush trembling fingers along the curve of her shoulder. Her skin felt hot and smooth. This wasn’t helping him focus.

“Hi,” she whispered, smiling sweetly and biting down on her plump bottom lip.

Fuck it. He tangled his fist in her hair and pulled her to his lips. “You don’t know the kind of things I want to do to you right now, sweetheart.” A little moan left her lips that went straight to his dick, and he swallowed it with a possessive kiss. “Wicked, filthy things.”

She opened her mouth with a whimper, almost fragile in the way it melted on his tongue. But she didn’t cave, instead wrapping her arms around his neck and grinding so he could feel the heat of her pussy through their clothes. His hand smoothed down her side, over the flare of her hip, and grabbed her ass.

But now wasn’t the time. Not before he was absolutely sure. He broke the kiss, lingering as they caught their breath.

She looked at him through her lashes, and a blush spread over her cheeks. “I, uh, meant to say, how has your morning been?”

“Just got a hell of a lot better.” He guided her back to his mouth, unable to resist another kiss. He nipped at her swollen lips, tasting them before leaving a trail of soft and slow kisses along her jaw. “You’re turning me into a fucking addict, Iv.” He scraped his teeth against her skin and breathed her in. “Can’t get enough.”

Her lips curved under his into a delicate smile. “Then take me. Take everything.”

She delivered the words so earnestly, with a reverent whisper, yet they were powerful enough to crack his heart in two.

He spun and pinned her against the door. Her chest heaved, nipples puckering through her bra. “Please tell me you’ve thought this through,” he panted. “I need to hear what you want, if it’s the sex or something more. I need to know that either way, you accept what comes with it.”

He knew he sounded desperate, and the bulge in his pants spoke for itself. This time he was the one begging instead of her. He didn’t care. All he needed was her answer—would she accept him, as broken as he was?

“I want all of it.” She leaned back against the door, letting him take in her flushed cheeks and glittering eyes, the mess he’d made of her carefully brushed hair, and the goosebumps running along her skin. The flicker of her pulse under the ribbon around her neck. “I want you.”

Shit. Dammit all to hell.

His eyes flashed, and he grabbed her wrists to raise them above her head. “Do you know what you’re saying?” He nudged his knee between her legs. Fuck, she smelled so good. “Do you know what I’ll do to you?”

She shook her head. He’d given her every right to be scared, every opportunity to say no, but she looked at him like a mouse who wanted to be caught.

He licked his lips. “I'll devour you, Iv. I'll break you a million times over and piece you back together as I please. I’ll mark every sigh, take every ounce of your pleasure, covet every drop of your pain.” He leaned in and inhaled her breath. “I’ll make you mine.”

She bit her lip and searched his eyes, then vulnerability overshadowed her arousal. “I’m going to want more than the other girls, Adrian. I want every part of you. Everything they couldn’t have.”

He groaned. “Sweetheart—”

She cut him off with a kiss.

Fuck waiting.

He needed her. Now.

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