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Sebastian steps back without a word, holding the door open in silent invitation.

I step inside, fidgeting with my bag, as he closes the door behind me, and the familiar scent of his cologne envelops me. The click of the lock echoes like a gunshot.

“What are you doing here?” His voice is flat.

I drop my gaze. I came here on impulse, driven by concern and a need to make things right, but now I’m not sure how to explain.

“I wanted to see you.” I hold out the box of cupcakes like a peace offering. “I made these for you.”

He stares at the box for a long moment before taking it from my hands. “Thanks.” He sets it on his desk.

The silence stretches between us, heavy with all the things unsaid.

“I just…” Lifting my head, I meet his gaze steadily. “The truth is, I miss you. Even after everything that’s happened. I still care. I wanted to hate you. It would be so much easier if I could. I wish I could, and I tried, but I-I can’t. It scares me because I know I shouldn’t, but I love you.”

“Is that my pretend card talking?”

“I don’t need to pretend.”

He stares at me, his expression unreadable, and the silence is a yawning chasm, threatening to swallow me whole. I search his face for any sign that I’m not too late. Then, in two strides, he’s in front of me, his hands rough but tender as they cup my face. His lips crash into mine. Hungry and desperate.

I gasp, the sound lost in the whirlwind of his kiss, my arms flying up around his neck. He smells fresh out of the shower, his hair still damp.

“I love you too, Lil. So fucking much.”

Relief floods my veins, warm and dizzying, followed by a wave of desire so intense it nearly knocks me over. I tilt my head back, exposing my throat. “Show me,” I whisper. “Show me how much you love me.”

His eyes darken, his grip on my hips tightening. “You sure about this, princess?”

I nod, biting my lip.

He groans, capturing my mouth in another kiss as he walks me backward towards the bed. My knees hit the edge, and we tumble down onto the mattress, a tangle of limbs and heatedskin. His body covers mine, hard and heavy in all the right places.

“Sebastian.” I breathe his name like a prayer.

“I’ve got you, princess.” His lips trail down my neck, his teeth nipping at my pulse point. “I’ve always got you.”

He sinks his teeth into the delicate skin of my neck, and I cry out. Pain and pleasure blur together.

“Mine.” He hums against my skin, the vibration making me shiver. “You’re fucking mine.”

He undresses me piece by piece until I’m laid bare before him, and then he strips off his own clothes. My mouth waters at the faint light casting shadows across the planes of his muscular chest and abs.

This man, this handsome, charming, kind, and complicated man. I’m lost.

Sebastian’s eyes, dark with lust, rake over my exposed skin, and I flush, equal parts nervous and excited.

“You’re so beautiful.” He leans back down, his breath is hot against my skin. “I want to worship every inch of you.”

True to his word, Sebastian begins a slow, torturous descent down my body. I arch into his touch, craving more, needing to feel him everywhere. But he takes his time, mapping a path of fire across my skin, pausing to nip and suck, and leaving a constellation of love bites in his wake. Each one a physical reminder of me belonging to him.

“Please,” I beg, my voice hoarse with want.

Sebastian lifts his head, his eyes locking with mine. In their depths swims the same desperate longing that consumes me, the same aching desire to be together. The dullness, the hurt—it’s all gone.

He reaches out to stroke a single finger down my body, from the hollow of my throat to the apex of my thighs. I whimper as he reaches my clit, my hips jolting.

Slowly, he comes up, looking straight into my soul. “Mark me, princess.”

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