Chapter 137: By a Hair’s Breadth

Sapphire gazed at her with that infinitely patient gentleness that seemed uniquely his. His impossibly blue eyes never left hers, as though he were simply waiting for her to stop thinking, if only for a moment.

Then he stepped closer.

Very slowly.

Slowly enough to give her every opportunity to pull away.

She didn't move.

His breath brushed softly across her face.

One hand glided gently up her arm to the nape of her neck, his fingers lingering for a moment among the fiery strands that had escaped her braid.

And before she fully realized what was happening, his lips met hers.

It wasn't a stolen kiss.

Nor was it hesitant.

He kissed her with quiet confidence, almost regal in its certainty, as though he were silently asking for permission... while already knowing she wouldn't refuse him.

The world seemed to slow.

The music still surrounded them, soft and elegant, until it became nothing more than a whisper beneath the frantic pounding of her heart.

Blanche froze for the briefest instant.

Her mind went completely blank.

There was no training.

No prophecies.

No Otherworld.

No missions.

Only him.

And the overwhelming intensity of this newfound closeness.

The final note faded away.

Silence slowly reclaimed the room.

Yet neither of them moved, their faces still so close that their breaths continued to mingle.

When she looked up at him, she caught her breath.

Something had changed in Sapphire's gaze.

His irises seemed darker now, deeper somehow, as though the light itself had chosen to linger within them. A new warmth burned there—subtle, yet impossible to ignore—softening the noble lines of his face even further.

Blanche suddenly became acutely aware of her own body.

Everything he touched felt startlingly vivid.

His hand holding hers.

His fingers still tangled gently in her hair.

His other arm wrapped carefully around her waist.

Even the warmth of his breath against her skin had become its own sensation.

As though every one of her senses had suddenly awakened.

She swallowed with difficulty.

Her heart hammered so violently she was certain he could hear it.

And before she had time to understand what compelled her to act, she rose slightly toward him.

Her eyelids fluttered shut.

This time, she was the one who closed the few remaining millimeters between them.

She finally returned his kiss.

Tentatively at first.

Then with the same disarming sincerity that always emerged whenever she finally stopped trying to control everything.

Lost in one another, intoxicated by their dance and by the music still echoing in their hearts, the two young lovers clung to each other with mounting urgency.

Nearly overwhelmed by his own desire, Sapphire caught her by the waist, lifted her effortlessly, and carried her to the couch before lowering her onto it.

Blanche, still reeling from the feel of his tongue against hers and the strength of his hands on her body, found herself breathless. She tilted her head back in search of air, and he took the opportunity to kiss the curve of her neck, gently nibbling at her skin before soothing the tender mark with his tongue, all the while purring softly.

The redhead had never felt so warm.

It was no longer the pleasant warmth that follows a dance or an embrace, but a true fever spreading beneath her skin, invading every thought and blurring everything that normally allowed her to stay in control. Her heart pounded so fiercely she could feel it all the way to her fingertips, while her breathing grew increasingly uneven.

She couldn't think anymore.

Or rather, she simply wasn't capable of it.

Only sensations remained.

The warmth of his body against hers.

The subtle fragrance surrounding him.

The tenderness of his touch, infinitely patient despite the intensity now blazing in both their eyes.

And above all, this startling new certainty that she desperately didn't want the moment to end.

When his hands slid with infinite care to the fabric of her dress, seeking to ease it aside without ever forcing a single movement, a shiver coursed through her entire body.

Her body reacted before her mind did.

In an instinctive motion, she lifted her hips ever so slightly, helping him free the fabric that still restricted their movements. She had never imagined that so light a touch could unleash such a tidal wave of emotion, nor that her own body could answer with such effortless spontaneity.

Completely captivated by what she was feeling, she allowed herself to be guided, no longer trying to control everything. The muscles that had so often remained tense from years of discipline gradually relaxed as she surrendered to their closeness with a trust that surprised even her.

As though, without needing to think about it, her body already knew exactly where it belonged beside his.

Which, in truth, it did.

Then, in a single heartbeat, he pulled away.

The moment was over.

He still had a perfect view of her underwear.

"Kysten is calling me. I have to go. After all, I'm his familiar. And besides... as much as I want this, now isn't the right time."

His voice was rough, desire written plainly across his face. The veins stood out beneath his skin as though he were physically struggling to restrain himself.

Blanche, still dazed, could only stare at him in confusion.

Then he vanished, leaving her there.

She let out a frustrated groan.

And when she realized she had come within a hair's breadth of sleeping with him before she was even sure she loved him, she silently thanked the elven vampire.

Desire was one thing.

Love was another.

She probably wouldn't have regretted it in the moment—most likely not at all—because she was certain she would have thoroughly enjoyed herself with such a skilled lover.

But afterward...

Afterward, she would have.

No wonder her mother had given in.

Faced with a demon like him...

How could anyone resist?

Her own daughter silently whispered an apology to her.

And promised herself she would make it properly, one day.

Frustrated.

Exhausted.

Shivering from the cold, she grabbed a blanket and a cushion before straightening her dress.

Then she wrapped herself in the lingering scent of the Drakion and fell asleep only seconds later.