Chapter 87: Chapter 87

Aria's Pov.

We hit the  mansion’s gate at full speed.

Warm lights glowed through the enormous windows, while everything else was dark.

Adrien glanced towards the entrance before lowering his voice instinctively.

"...Do you think everyone's asleep?"

I looked up at the house.

"Obviously, it’s almost 12am."

"...Good point."

We hurried toward the front doors.

Adrien eased one open as carefully as he could and the enormous entrance hall greeted us in complete silence.

We stood in the entrance hall, dripping, laughing, completely out of breath.

Adrien pushed his soaked hair back with one hand before flashing me a grin.

“See?”

I narrowed my eyes.

“Don’t.”

“That was fun.”

I was laughing too hard to argue.

Adrien put his finger to his lips. "Shh. Someone will hear us."

"You're the one talking…"

"Shh—"

I pressed my hand over my mouth.

He shook his head, still laughing under his breath, before suddenly slipping one arm behind my knees.

The other wrapped around my back.

Before I had time to react...

The floor disappeared.

"Adrien!"

I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck as he lifted me effortlessly.

"You're too loud," he whispered with entirely fake seriousness.

"I am not!"

"You are now."

"I'm literally whispering."

"Barely."

I pressed my face into his shoulder, trying my best not to make noise.

Adrien carried me up the stairs, down the corridor and pushed my door open with his shoulder.

Then he dropped me onto my bed and I looked up at him.

We were both soaked. His white shirt clung translucent to every ridge of muscle, rain dripping from his blonde hair that he’d pushed back from his face. The faint scent of whiskey still clung to his skin from the restaurant—warm, smoky, mixing with the clean smell of rain. We were both a little tipsy, giddy and reckless in the best way.

“Hi,” he said, his voice low and rough.

“Hi,” I whispered back, already breathless.

Adrien leaned down and kissed me.

The kiss started soft but quickly turned hungry. A low growl rumbled in his chest as his tongue slid against mine, deep and demanding. Rainwater dripped from his hair onto my cheeks. I grabbed the front of his soaked shirt and pulled him down on top of me, our wet bodies sliding together.

“Adrien…” I gasped against his mouth.

“Shh, Aria . They’re sleeping,” he murmured, but his hands were already moving, sliding under my drenched top, his palms hot against my chilled skin. His fingers traced up my ribs, thumbs brushing the undersides of my breasts until I shivered and arched into him.

We tried to stay quiet and every moan I swallowed turned into a desperate whimper. Every growl he made vibrated against my throat as he kissed down my neck, sucking lightly at the rain-slick skin. His hips rolled against mine, the hard length of him pressing between my legs through our soaked clothes.

The friction made my head spin.

Our clothes came off in a frantic, quiet rush, his shirt hitting the floor with a wet slap, my top and Jorts following. Skin met skin, still cool from the rain but burning underneath. He settled between my thighs, one hand gripping my hip hard enough to leave marks while the other braced beside my head.

“Look at me,” he breathed.

I did. His blue eyes had darkened, pupils blown with lust and whiskey. He kissed me again,  he tasted like rain and alcohol as he pushed inside me in one slow, deep thrust.

My nails dug into his back as I bit his shoulder to muffle the moan that tried to rip out of me. Adrien groaned low in his throat, the sound barely contained, and started moving—deep, rolling strokes that made my bed creak softly beneath us. Every thrust pushed me higher, the wet slide of our bodies and the quiet slap of skin the only sounds in the dark room.

“Fuck… you feel so good Aria,” he whispered hotly against my ear, his voice wrecked. His hand slid between us,  his fingers circling my clit, and I had to press my face into his neck to keep from crying out his name.

We moved together slow and intense at first, then faster, more desperate. The both of us fighting to stay quiet while the pleasure built higher and higher. Rain tapped against the window, matching the rhythm of his hips.

We stayed locked together afterward breathing hard, our  hearts hammering, still damp from rain and sweat.

He kissed me again, it was slow and sweet ,his fingers gently brushing wet strands of hair from my face.

"I'm glad we went bowling," he murmured, his voice thick with exhaustion.

"So am I."

Adrien hummed quietly, already drifting somewhere between  being awake and falling asleep.

A long silence settled over us.

His thumb moved once across my side before stopping.

"I love you."

The words were so quiet I almost thought I'd imagined them.

My heart stopped.

I turned my head slightly to look at him.

His face was relaxed, the tension gone from it completely, his  breathing slow and even.

My chest tightened painfully.

I opened my mouth.

"Adrien..."

The words caught somewhere behind my ribs.

Say it.

He deserved to hear it.

He deserved honesty.

Instead all I could think about was Lucien.

The investigation.

The lies I'd told.

The messages I'd hidden.

Every secret sitting between us while he looked at me like I hung the moon.

A lump rose in my throat.

How could I tell someone I loved them...

...while hiding an entire life from them?

The guilt settled heavily in my chest.

I wanted to say it.

God, I wanted to.

More than anything.

But the words refused to come.

I looked back at him.

His breathing had evened out completely.

Somewhere between my silence and the weight of the blankets, he'd fallen asleep.

A tiny smile still rested on his face, he hadn't even noticed I never answered.

I reached up carefully, brushing the damp hair away from his forehead one last time.

"I'm sorry," I whispered so quietly even though I barely heard it.

Outside, rain continued to whisper against the windows.

Inside, I closed my eyes, sleep came eventually.

But the guilt got there first.