Page 89 of Runaway Hearts: Seduced by Danger

The room shrinks, the walls closing in as our eyes lock, neither of us willing to break the connection first. It’s as if we’re teetering on the edge of something monumental.

The movie serves as a backdrop, its violence mirroring the chaos that brought us together.

“Do you think I’d make a good villain?” I ask, knowing I’d be the worst villain of all time.

But Kai’s eyes light up, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “I think you’d be stellar, yes.”

I chuckle, feeling a blush creep up my neck. “You’re just saying that.”

His fingers skim down my arm. “No, I mean it. You’d be the kind of villain no one sees coming.”

“Until I stumble over my evil monologue.”

I tilt my head back, eyes half-closed as I savor how he touches me. The movie’s action scene plays on, but my mind is elsewhere—fixated on the present moment.

“You’ve got this untapped darkness in you, Marianne. Strong, creative, beautiful. I see it.”

His words ignite something deep within. The idea of him seeing sides of me I’ve never acknowledged thrills me.

“Really?”

Kai’s touch becomes more purposeful, tracing lines across my skin as if writing a story only he can read.

He nods slowly, eyes locked onto mine.

Our gazes don’t break as we finish our last bites, reluctant to give up on each other’s sight.

“I have to admit,” he murmurs between mouthfuls, “this road trip is far more interesting than I first imagined.” My heart thunders against my ribcage as he whispers: “Tell me my mind isn’t making this up.” His voice is low and smooth, like stones rolling on a riverbed.

“It’s not.” I suck in a breath, and it takes all my courage to speak again. “Do you really want this?”

He nods with half-lidded eyes, his hand finding its way to my thigh. I gasped at the touch, and we let our guards down.

“You know I do,” he whispers, his hot breath against my neck.

As he pushes me onto my back, his lips travel to mine once again. Our tongues dance, intertwine; it’s as if we’ve been waiting for this moment forever. Our bodies move in sync, undulating like waves crashing onto sand.

I sigh into his mouth as the wet heat of his tongue meets mine.

It’s sweet and spicy.

Our fingers entwine in a desperate grip. Our harsh breaths mingle with the movie’s background score, which fades into oblivion under our heavy petting. His hand finds its way up my top and cups my breast. His thumb rolls over my nipple, sending blissful shockwaves through my body.

Kai moans against my lips before pulling away to rest his head on my chest. “This is better than anything I could’ve dreamed of,” he murmurs, unsure what to do next but wanting more.

I trace his jawline with shaking fingers, his stubble scratching against my palm.

But my insecurities demand to be soothed. “Why me?”

Kai hesitates for a moment, his head buried in my chest as if I were his shelter from a raging storm. “Because I need you,” he says with an unsteady voice. “Being near you is the only time I feel any semblance of peace, and the rage shuts up.” He presses a trail of soft kisses down my neck, stopping at the rapid pulse point on my throat. “When I’m with you, the rotten parts of my soul can finally heal, and I’m a person again. Not just a deadly pawn in a war for power.”

My breath catches in my throat as I process his words. It all feels too much. But I can’t deny I feel the same way. He’s raw and vulnerable—his walls crumbling down just as mine do when we’re together.

“You’re not all bad.”

“You’re the only person in my life who’s ever tagged me as redeemable,” he whispers against my skin. “You see something in me that I didn’t even know existed. The potential to be someone else, to be who I want to be, and I need that.”

“I want that, too.” The words tumble out before I can stop them, honest and frightening in their intensity.

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