Chapter 35 A MISTAKE.
\~~~DAMIEN.
I finished unzipping her dress and froze.
For a second, just one dangerous second, I forgot how to breathe.
Her bare back was smooth, untouched, and glowing softly under the light. The curve of her spine drew my eyes down before I could stop myself, and when my fingers brushed against her skin, it felt like electricity shot straight through my chest.
God.
I wanted to pull her closer.
I wanted to bend down, press my mouth to that warm skin, and feel her react to me the way my body was already responding to her.
Four years of restraint screamed at me to stop.
So, I did.
I forced my hand away and rested it briefly on her shoulder instead, grounding myself.
“You should freshen up,” I said, my voice calmer than I felt. “I will fix us something to eat.”
I turned away before temptation could talk me into doing something reckless and before I could change my mind.
“You are… leaving?”
Her voice stopped me mid-step and I turned back. “What?”
“I mean,” she hesitated, “Just like that?”
I swallowed, struggling to look at nowhere else but her face.
“Do you need help with something else, moonlight?” I asked, carefully neutral while still forcing my eyes to stay on her face.
She didn’t answer.
Instead, I heard the fabric shift and instinctively, I turned away fast and walked straight out of the room without another word.
If I stayed one more second, I would fail myself.
\~~~
By the time I reached the kitchen, my chest felt too tight.
I dropped a pot on the counter harder than necessary and ran a hand through my hair.
Four fucking years of wanting her.
The first time I saw Serena Evans was at a family event I never planned to attend.
I had gone only because everyone wouldn’t shut up about it.
She stood by the railing, alone, wearing a purple gown that didn’t really belong in that crowd or on someone so young. A glass of wine rested in her hand, untouched, like she was holding it only because she didn’t know what else to do with herself.
She looked uncomfortable, and so out of place.
And then, something in my chest twisted.
For the first time in a long time, I wanted to pull someone away from a room.
But she was young, way too young.
So I looked away.
Then I felt it.
Her gaze, and when I glanced back, she was looking at me… really looking at me, but then, Ryan was beside her, leaning close, and pointing in my direction like he was explaining who I was.
I left shortly after and asked one of my men to look into her.
Serena Evans, twenty one years old.
Shit, that was a no-go area. I had warned myself.
But, life doesn’t really care about what anyone wants, right?
Because somehow, again and again, she found her way back into my orbit.
And now she was my wife, and I was terrified.
Terrified that if I touched her the wrong way… I could lose her.
What if she ran?
What if she woke up tomorrow and realized she’d married a man too much, too intense, and too dangerous to her peace?
I exhaled sharply and focused on the counter.
Food. I needed to focus on food.
And that was when I felt it again.
Her presence, so I slowly turned around.
“Moonlight,” I breathed.
She stood in the doorway and my eyes betrayed me instantly.
The towel hung loosely around her body, held up only by one hand. Her hair was damp, curling at the ends, and her skin…
Fuck.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, forcing myself to sound normal. “You are not taking your bath anymore?”
“Do I repulse you?”
The question hit me so hard that I actually stepped back.
“Excuse me?”
“Do I irritate you that much?” she pressed.
“You are being irrational.”
“No, you are,” she shot back. “You act as though the sight of me sickens you.”
If only she knew.
My gaze dropped before I could stop it. I looked at her plump lips, God, those kissable lips of hers, her almond eyes, the line of her neck, and then the hand that gripped the towel a little bit hard before I forced my eyes back up.
“You should take your bath, Serena,” I said quietly. “You are…”
“Not drunk,” she cut in. “I am sober as hell. I am in the right frame of mind, and I know exactly what I am doing.”
I pressed my lips together and took another step back.
“Moonlight.”
Then, she slowly crossed over to where I stood, and I unconsciously took a step back.
She was so small standing in front of me, yet she felt too much. Looking at her felt like crossing a line I’d spent years guarding.
Looking at her alone felt like sin, like my gaze on her was a kind of dirt that could never be washed away.
“Am I not woman enough for you?”
“Baby,” I started, “you should go and fresh…”
Because I could finish the sentence, she let go of the towel and my breath left my lungs.
“You are…” My voice dropped, rough. “You’re going to regret this,” I said, lowly, struggling to look only at her face and not the chaos below.
“Tell me,” she whispered.
“What?”
She closed the space between us but instinct took over as my hand came up, not harsh, and not cruel but just enough to stop her, my hands wrapping around her neck, grounding the both of us.
“Tell me I repulse you. Tell me all of me sickens you, and I will leave. I will maintain my lane in this marriage and play the part of an immovable wife just as you wanted.”
“Serena,” I growled.
“Say it.”
“You are making a mistake.”
“Say it,” she provoked me further.
And just then, something in me snapped.
“You know what?” I tightened my grip around her neck and pulled her closer
“Fuck this,” I breathed.
And then, I crashed my lips on hers, my hand slowly cupping her breast.