Page 118 of Ruins
I glance at the frosting on my thumb before bringing it to her lips.
Her gaze flickers down, hesitant yet intrigued, before she parts her mouth and accepts it. A gentle suck, her tongue flicking against my skin.
Heat crashes through me like a tidal wave.
I pull my thumb from her mouth, replacing it with my lips, capturing her in a kiss as sweet and sinful as the dessert we’d just devoured.
She gasps but doesn’t pull away. Instead, her arms wind around my neck, and I seize the moment, lifting her onto my lap. The hem of her dress bunches around her thighs, baring her soft skin to my touch.
The warmth of her body against mine is more intoxicating than any liquor. Her lips move impatiently against mine, matching my intensity stroke for stroke. A low groan escapes me as I deepen the kiss, chasing the lingering sweetness of chocolate from her mouth and replacing it with something far more potent—us.
I leave her lips just long enough to trail hot, open-mouthed kisses down her neck, reveling in the soft sighs spilling from her lips.
Her voice—breathy,desperate—rings in my ears like a siren’s call.
I pull down the strap of her dress as I go, my lips following the exposed skin, lingering at her collarbone, then lower. She shivers beneath my touch, and when I nip lightly at the soft curve of her cleavage, her fingers tangle in my hair, a gasp breaking free.
The sounds she makes aremine, a melody that feeds the insatiable hunger clawing at my gut.
My hands slide up her thighs, fingertips tracing slow, teasing circles over the sensitive skin. When our eyes meet, hers are dark with unspoken longing, mirroring the storm inside me. A sense of satisfaction washes over me as I take in the power of desire I hold over this beautiful creature. I continue my lips assault on her skin, drowning in her, her sounds, herneed.
“Santo,” she pleas, pulling me out of my reverie. Her voice is strained with desire.
The way she says my name nearly undoes me.
“Yes, Dea?” I murmur, nuzzling the soft skin beneath her ear, breathing her in.
She exhales shakily. “I... I want you.”
Her confession is hesitant, as if afraid to voice it aloud.
I stop, pulling back just enough to take her in—the flush painting her cheeks, the way her body sings beneath my touch, the raw anticipation in her eyes.
She bites her lower lip, waiting.
I open my mouth to respond—
My phone rings.
The shrill sound snaps the moment in half like a blade slicing through silk.
Fuck.
I pull the phone from my pocket, my jaw clenching when I see the name flashing across the screen. Maksim.
Vasilisa shifts, the spell broken, and slips off my lap, her gaze downcast as she smooths her dress.
I stand, turning away as I answer the call, frustration curling hot and tight in my chest. Maksim needs surveillance pulled from one of the docks where a shipment has been intercepted.
By the time I hang up and turn back—she’s gone.
The rest of the night is spent drowning in work, sending over intel, making calls. But my mind isn’t on the docks.
It’s on the woman who should be in my arms.
Instead, she’s curled up alone in her bed, and I watch her through the security feed—like a coward.
Guilt gnaws at me, but it’s nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
