Page 64 of Cold Heir

Silas still hadn’t said much, not even when we stopped by a local lab he had access to, where we deposited the blood for analysis, and the supplies he promised my team.

Taking the long material of my red dress in my fingers, I took to the stairs. Silas’ hand at the small of my back, guiding me, made my breaths quicken. What I suspected to be a budding crush merely one week ago, had turned into something altogether different.

Something far more powerful, more significant.

We reached the top of the stairs, and thanking him seemed grossly understated. So, I didn’t bother. Instead, when we paused outside my suite, I placed a single kiss to the corner of his mouth, and peered up at him with amazement in my eyes.

“Goodnight,” I said breathlessly, because it was the only way I could address him at the moment.

“Goodnight,” he echoed, leaving me to pine in his shadow when he turned to leave me.

I stepped inside my room and nearly collapsed at the door, unsure how I’d been able to let him walk away so easily. Every part of me wanted to hold on to him.

Disappointed with my lack of courage, I slipped out of the dress that had been part of the ruse, and let it fall into a heap along with my underwear, lowering the shoes I held there, too. I crossed the room to the dresser, naked until I slipped a gray, thigh-length nightshirt that resembled a lengthy tank top over my head. Securing my hair in a bun, I lit a tall candle and collapsed on the bed.

It felt strange letting the night end like this, when the energy between Silas and I had been running hot all night, right up until we parted ways at my door. Even now, my heart lurched for me to go to him, to humble myself and just …knock.

The instant the word came to mind, I thought I heard a small sound at my door. It wasn’t until the second tap that I realized it wasn’t my imagination. I got up quickly, breathing unevenly with who I hoped I’d find on the other side.

And with the twist of the knob, that heat and longing returned full force.

He’d come back.

Taking in the sight of him, there was no way I’d let Silas get away again. My hand gripped the nape of his neck, and I pulled him inside my bedroom. The second we were locked in, just the two of us, I knew I wouldn’t let him leave this time until we both got what we wanted.

Silas was the quiet storm I never saw coming, and as he took ownership of my lips with a commanding kiss, I was certain of it.

His cool hands braced my neck between them, and I inched closer as they warmed against my skin. The emotion between us continued to steep.

Our lips stayed locked as his long strides led us toward the bed. He sat, pulling me down to straddle him, and my knees pressed into the mattress, never allowing the distance between us to grow. There was just something about knowing how real our chemistry was that drove me forward, full-steam ahead. It only increased tonight, realizing how our interests had somehow aligned.

In a way, it’d been in the back of my mind that I’d only fallen for a prince of the Dynasty because of the bond’s juju. And this had caused me to question its depth on more than one occasion. However, the rawness that existed in this space now, blew that theory right out the water.

A cool breath passed over my lips when I pulled away, only long enough to ease further up his toned thighs, until my knees settled against his hips. With him beneath me, I felt powerful in ways I hadn’t before, and the awareness of it went to my head.

“Take this off,” I commanded, practically tearing at the t-shirt he’d changed into.

Without hesitation, he followed my orders.

I loved the feel of his fingertips tracing wanton trails up and down my thighs, loved it even more when those same gentle caresses were used to ease the straps of my nightshirt down my shoulders. I freed my arms, and when we embraced, my bare chest crashed against his.

My lips were drawn to his again. It was as though my body had a mind of its own now, responding less to cues from my moral compass, and more to the demands of nature.

Specifically,hisnature.

I felt him beneath me, aware of how this intimate moment between us had aroused him.

Bigtime.

A deep groan from him intermingled with our kiss, brought on by the feeling of me settling onto his lap completely. No longer intimidated by the idea of there being a such thing as ‘too close’. Strong hands settled at the curve of my waist, and that heat between us doubled. The surge made it feel as though time sped up, resulting in a frenzy of flying clothes that fluttered to the carpet as we resumed our position.

There was a sense of relief that stemmed from there no longer being a single barrier of fabric between us. There was only him. Only me.

Only us.

As I lifted my hips before lowering down onto him again, taking him in, a gentle squeeze to my waist brought a soft cry from within, expressing a vulnerability, aweaknessfor his touch I wouldn’t have shared otherwise. The bed creaked in rhythm, and I only paused to allow Silas to work his fingers through my hair, removing the jostled bun that sat atop my head. As the strands cascaded down my back, the warmth of his lips covered my throat.

The sensation of it sent a ravenous, primal need pulsating through my veins.