Page 50 of Cruel Hero

“There’s business I need to attend to.”

I swallow hard. “Is it dangerous?”

He hesitates, just for a moment, but it’s enough to make my stomach twist. “I’ll be careful. I promise.”

I want to argue, to demand more details, but the look in his eyes stops me. There’s something unspoken in his gaze, a shadow of worry he’s trying to shield me from. Instead of pressing, I lean down, resting my forehead against his. His hands on my waist tighten.

“You’ll come back to me,” I state.

“Always,” he murmurs, his breath warm against my skin.

He tilts his head, capturing my lips in a kiss that’s both tender and desperate as if he’s already trying to memorize the feel of me. My fingers curl into the fabric of his shirt, holding him close like I can keep him here by sheer will.

When we finally pull apart, he takes my hand and presses a kiss to my palm, his lips lingering for a moment before he meets my gaze again.

“Before I leave, I need to remind you how good we are together. How good you look plastered against me, your breath hitching as I take you apart piece by piece.”

My pulse quickens, and I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks, but I don’t pull away. Instead, I lean into him, my hands sliding down his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath my fingertips.

“Remind me.”

Chapter 21

Tiffany

In one fluid motion, Adrien lifts me up, and I automatically wrap my legs around his waist as he carries me down the hallway to the mirror propped up against his bedroom wall.

Our reflections stare back at us, our bodies pressed together, my golden curls spilling over his shoulders as his hands grip my thighs, holding me firmly against him. His lips brush against the curve of my neck, and I shiver, my fingers tangling in his hair as he kisses a trail along my collarbone.

“You need to see what you do to me, angel. How you make me lose control.”

I can’t look away from our reflection, from the way his muscles tense beneath my hands, the way his breath hitches when my nails dig lightly into his skin.

There’s something electric in the air between us, a current that’s always there, always pulling us closer, no matter how much distance we try to put between us. And now, with him leaving soon, it feels like the world is closing in, like this moment is all we have.

He sets me down gently, turning me so my back is pressed against the mirror, the cool glass sending a shiver down my spine. His hands move to my waist, his thumbs brushing against the hem of my dress, teasing the bare skin underneath. Slowly, he lifts the fabric, his touch deliberate and unhurried, as if he’s savoring every second.

When the dress falls to the floor, he steps back, his gaze raking over me with a possessiveness that makes my heart race. He takes his time, his eyes tracing every curve, every inch of exposed skin, as if committing me to memory. My cheeks flush under his scrutiny, but I don’t look away.

I want him to see me, all of me, just as I am.

Then he closes the distance between us again, his hands finding my hips and pulling me against him. His lips find mine in a kiss that’s both tender and demanding, a silent promise of everything he’s about to give me.

I melt into him, my hands sliding up his chest to grip the lapels of his jacket, pulling it off and letting it fall to the floor beside us. His shirt follows, and I’m left with the sight of him, all hard planes and taut muscle, his skin warm beneath my fingertips.

Adrien steps back again, just long enough to strip off the rest of his clothes, and then he’s back, pressing me against the mirror once more. His body is a furnace against mine, his hands roaming over my skin with a kind of reverence that leaves me breathless.

He kisses me again, deeper this time, his tongue tangling with mine in a way that makes my knees weak.

My hands slide down his back, feeling the ripple of muscle beneath his skin as he moves against me.

“Look at yourself.” He turns me to face the mirror again, his chest pressed against my back, his lips grazing the shell of my ear. His hands slide down my arms, guiding them to rest on the cool glass as he steps closer, his body flush against mine.

I can feel the heat of him, the unmistakable evidence of his desire pressing into the small of my back.

My breath catches, my reflection staring back at me with wide, hazy eyes, cheeks flushed, and lips parted.

It’s obscene.

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