Page 19 of Silent Night With Adrian

My fingers tremble with the urge to touch her, reassure her, but I hold back, fists clenched as I go into the kitchen to heat up a mug of water to make her some tea.

“Here,” I say, coming back from the kitchen and handing her the mug of hot tea and honey.

“Thank you,” She takes it carefully, watching me as if she’s worried I might snap at her. As she takes several sips, the silence hangs heavy, thick with everything unsaid.

I take a seat next to her on the sofa.

She clasps her hands together after setting aside the mug on the end table, her fingers turning a little pale as she tightens them on her lap.

When I finally allow myself to speak, my voice is cold, controlled, belying the storm of emotions underneath. “You could have died out there, Mia. You ran into a storm,without shoes, without a plan, based on… what? A half-heard conversation?”

Her cheeks flush, and she looks down, avoiding my gaze.

“I need to know that you understand what you did,” I continue, voice lowering. “If you’re going to be with me, Mia, you can’t just run into danger like that. You don’t get to put yourself at risk like that—not if you’re mine.” I catch the flicker of surprise in her eyes, but I press on, stepping closer. “Not without facing the consequences.”

The fire crackles, filling the silence with a steady, heated pulse, as if matching the restrained fury coursing through me.

“I—I didn’t know,” she stammers, a note of defiance creeping in as she squares her shoulders. “How was I supposed to know what to believe, Adrian? I heard you, and it sounded like—”

“Like I was using you?” I growl, inching closer, enough to be able to feel her warmth against my side. “After everything we shared last night, you still thought I’d throw you away like that?”

Mia’s eyes flash with disbelief, her chest rising and falling as she pulls herself away from me, a raw fury radiating off her in waves. “How was I supposed to know how you felt?” Her voice is sharp, trembling with desperate emotion. “We’ve known each other for less than 24 hours, Adrian! That’s just one day. You know how I felt about you. I told you last night. But you didn’t say a damn thing back. Not one word.”

I open my mouth to argue, but she cuts me off, a fierce, hurt light in her eyes. “You think I was just supposed to trust you? You, a man with a reputation for tossing women like used tissues after a quick fuck in bed? Why would I believe I’d be any different?”

The sting of her words hits deep, piercing through my righteous anger and dragging out the truth I’ve barely had time to reckon with myself. I grip her shoulders, forcing her to meet my gaze. “You are different, Mia,” I say, my voice low, adangerous edge sharpening each word. “You walked into my life, and in less than a day, you’ve done what no woman has ever come close to doing.”

She lets out a disbelieving laugh, her fists pressing against my chest in resistance, her face set in a mask of disbelief. “And what exactly is that, Adrian? Make it make sense to me.”

I tighten my hold, my heart pounding as I let the words tumble out, raw and unfiltered. “You. Belong. To. Me,” I growl, each word a steady thrum of truth. “And I belong to you. Do you understand that? There isn’t a woman alive who could have made me consider breaking every vow I swore to my brother, every line I promised not to cross, just to be close to her.”

Her eyes widen, a flicker of uncertainty breaking through her anger, but I’m not finished.

“Do you have any idea what that means for me? What it means for a man like me to feel this way?”

I pull her closer, my voice dropping to a dark, possessive whisper. “It means I would do anything for you. I would go against every oath, every loyalty, just to make sure you’re safe. And you, Mia Vitale, have the audacity to risk your life, to think you can run away from me.”

She tries to look away, but I tilt her chin, forcing her to look into my eyes, to see the depths of my fury and devotion. “If you ever pull a stunt like that again, if you ever think you can just leave me—” I pause, taking a ragged breath to control the surge of anger that boils under the surface, “I will make damn sure you can’t walk straight for a week. I’ll keep you in that bed, my bed, until you’re so full of me you can’t see, hear, feel anything but what I give you.”

Her breath hitches, and I see the heat in her eyes, the defiance battling with desire as she realizes I’m deadly serious.

“And don’t even think about defying me again, Mia. Because next time,” I lean in until my lips are a hair’s breadth from hers,“I won’t let you out of my sight. I’ll keep you locked away if that’s what it takes. I’ll take you over and over until the only thought in your head is how you belong to me. Barefoot and pregnant, if I have to.”

A soft gasp escapes her, and I feel her fists unclench against my chest, her hands flattening, her touch softening. She’s struggling, torn between her need to hold onto her independence and the undeniable pull that’s left her trembling in my arms.

I take a breath, forcing myself to soften, my hand moving up to cradle her cheek, my thumb brushing over the slight dampness of her tears that spilled over. “You mean more to me than you know,” I murmur, my voice thick with barely controlled emotion. “But if you want to test me, if you want to risk yourself, then understand there are consequences.”

She glances up with a puzzled look. “Consequences?” Her voice is a mixture of defiance and curiosity, and I know she’s challenging me, pushing against the limits just to see how I’ll react.

“Yes. Consequences.” My voice drops to a growl as I pull her close, pressing her against my chest. “You don’t get to scare me like that, Mia. You don’t get to put your life at risk and expect me to just let it slide.”

For a moment, neither of us speaks, both of us breathing hard, the raw heat between us almost unbearable. Finally, she lifts her chin, her eyes blazing with the last embers of defiance.

“Are you going to… punish me?” Her voice is barely a whisper, a mix of disbelief and fascination spreading across her face.

Those words ignite something primal inside me. Her question is half a challenge, half a plea, as if she’s daring me to take her, to push past the boundaries we’ve kept between us.

I cup her face, tilting her head up to meet my gaze, my thumb brushing over her lower lip, feeling the slight tremble there. “Ifthat’s what it takes to make you understand,” my voice laced with a dark promise, “then yes, that’s exactly what I plan to do.”

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