Page 139 of Hide From Me

Her palms land on my chest, fingers curling just slightly into the fabric of my shirt. She holds herself there for a heartbeat longer than she needs to, and in that moment, the world could burn to ash and I wouldn’t care. Because she’s here. She’s choosing to be here. With me.

“Hi, I’m Raylen, wanna dance with me?” she asks, her voice light—almost playful—but her eyes tell a different story. They’re serious, intense, like she’s offering me more than just a dance. Like she’s offering me a way back.

I force a smirk, trying to steady myself. “This isn’t dancing music. Besides, don't you need to know my name first?”

Her fingers curl slightly into the front of my shirt, anchoring us both in place, and that same defiant, teasing smile softens just enough to cut deep. There’s warmth there. Knowing. Like she already has the answer to every question I haven’t dared to ask.

“I already know who you are. You’re my monster,” she says softly, voice dipping lower with something heavier than a joke. Her breath fans across my skin as she leans in, pressing her forehead lightly to mine until I can’t see anything but her lashes and the shine of emotion in her eyes. “The one who follows my light home.”

God. I could fall apart right here.

That’s all it takes. That sentence. That moment. I slide my hand into hers and pull her toward the edge of the floor without another word. My heart is pounding like I’ve just been yanked back from the edge of something dark, and she’s the one who caught me.

“Lead me back to you, baby.” I whisper back.

Her fingers tighten around mine, not just holding—butclaiming, anchoring. She’s choosing me again, and I feel it in every inch of my body. We move through the reception like the rest of it barely exists, weaving past sloshing champagne flutes, tipsy laughter, and swaying bodies wrapped in silk and shadow. But I barely notice them.

The music hums low, steady in the background, and I draw her into me, hand sliding to her back as I pull her in. Her body molds to mine like it was made for this—forus—and the ache in my chest is so strong it nearly buckles me.

The one who follows my light home.

That one sentence shatters me. Every scar, every fracture, every piece of me I thought was too broken to matter strains toward her now, drawn to the way she fits against me, the way she sways with me like we were always meant to move together. We dance, slow at first, then losing ourselves in the music until I don’t know where I end and she begins. Until the song fades, long over, and I don’t want to let her go.

I lean in, lips brushing the soft curve of her temple, tasting salt and sun and her. “Come with me.”

She sucks in a sharp breath—surprised, maybe—but when she looks at me, really looks, she nods.

We move like shadows, slipping between the swaying fabric that borders the canopy, invisible to the world. The night air rushes over us—cool, sharp, laced with salt and the faint crash of waves on the shore. Moonlight slices through the trees, silvering the sand beneath our feet. My palm rests at the small of her back, warm against the silk of her dress, guiding her wordlessly along the packed path. Her heels crunch with each step, but she doesn’t falter. My hand never leaves her. I can’t let it.

We reach her car—half-hidden beneath the trees, wrapped in shadow and moonlight. Private. Secluded. The world fades beyond this spot, and I feel the last of my control slip.

“Here?” she whispers, voice trembling with anticipation.

I don’t answer. I don’t need to. I turn her by the hips, press her back against the cool metal of the trunk, and crash my mouth to hers. Hard. Desperate. Like I’ve been starved for this—because I have. Weeks of restraint snap like a wire pulled too tight. My lips devour hers, and she gasps, then moans, low and sweet, as I pin her there, body to body. My hands slide under the hem of her dress, feeling the heat of her skin, the softness I’ve been dying to touch. My tongue claims her mouth, tasting her, needing her like I need air.

She melts into me, fingers tangling in my collar, yanking me closer, her kiss fierce and hungry. Like we’re made of fire, burning each other down, and neither of us cares what’s left after.

“You have no idea,” I growl, breaking away just long enough to nip at her neck, tasting the delicate skin below her ear, “what you do to me.”

She arches into me, breath hitching, her mouth brushing my jaw, voice dark and wicked. “Then show me.”

I don’t hesitate. My hands skim lower, dragging her dress up, baring her thighs to the night air. I find the thin band of her panties and ease them down slow, watching them slide over her legs, fall to her ankles like a gift she’s offering up. My fingers find her, hot and wet, slick with need that makes me groan, low and guttural.

“Fuck, baby…” I hiss, sliding two fingers through her folds, circling her clit just once—just enough to feel her jolt, to hear her sharp gasp, to feel her nails dig into my shoulder. “You’re soaked.”

Her breath shudders out, lips brushing my ear like a secret. “Don’t tease me, Moe.”

“You want it that bad?” I taunt, my mouth at her throat, kissing, biting softly, losing myself in her taste. “You want me to fuck you out here, while they’re inside raising a glass to forever?”

Her laugh is breathless, trembling, like she’s barely holding herself together. “Only if you make me come before dessert.”

That’s all it takes. My belt’s undone fast, the clink of the buckle loud in the quiet. I free myself, hard and leaking at the tip, aching for her. The second her eyes drop, catch sight of me, her lips part, and her pupils blow wide, dark with need.

She lifts one leg, wraps it around my hip, heel digging into the back of my thigh, urging me closer, deeper. Like she’s already begging for it. For me.

“You’re gonna have to stay quiet, sunshine,” I warn, my voice low, rough with everything I’m holding back, as I guide myself to her entrance, dragging the head of my cock through her slick folds, coating myself in her.

And she smiles—that wild, sharp, troublemaking smile that’s always undone me. “Then don’t give me a reason to scream.”

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