Chapter 12 Chapter 12

Chapter 12 Chapter 12
Callahan’s lip curled as his gaze locked onto Adrian and the girl perched on his lap. The disgust in his eyes was unmistakable. Before Adrian could even open his mouth, Callahan spun on his heel and stormed outside, chasing after Lydia.

“Get off me.” Adrian shoved the girl aside with a sharp motion, not sparing her a glance as she hit the floor. His jaw clenched. He swept his eyes across the silent library, then bolted for the door, panic and fury driving him forward.

Adrian looked around wildly until he finally found Lydia and Callahan. His breath hitched the moment he saw them together. Callahan was saying something low and gentle, something meant only for her, and Lydia was smiling at him.

Jealousy burned through Adrian’s chest, sharp and unforgiving. His hands curled into fists as the sight carved into him, twisting something deep in his heart that refused to heal.

Adrian moved before either of them could react. His stride was fast and purposeful, anger rolling off him in waves as he closed the distance between them. Lydia barely had time to turn before his arms were around her, lifting her clean off the ground and pulling her against his chest in a firm bridal hold.

“Adrian, what are you doing?” Lydia gasped, her hands pressing uselessly against his shoulder as he straightened.

Callahan stepped forward instantly, his voice sharp with alarm. “Put her down.”

Adrian finally looked at him. The stare was cold, dangerous, and filled with a promise of consequences. Callahan’s words died in his throat as the weight of that glare settled over him, leaving him frozen in place.

Adrian turned away without another word and started down the hallway, his grip tightening slightly as Lydia struggled in his arms. She twisted and pushed against him, her protests growing louder, more desperate with every step. Students glanced up in shock as they passed, whispers trailing behind them, but Adrian did not slow.

“Adrian, let me go,” Lydia demanded, her voice shaking with anger and fear. She tried to slide out of his hold, striking his chest in frustration, but it was like fighting a stone. Nothing she did made him falter.

He reached an empty classroom and kicked the door open, carrying her inside without hesitation. Even then, as she continued to resist, his expression remained unreadable and rigid, his focus fixed forward as if nothing else in the world existed except getting her away from everyone else.

The moment the door shut behind them, Lydia exploded.

“What is wrong with you,” she shouted, finally breaking free enough to shove at his chest. Her eyes burned with fury. “First you humiliate me in the library with that ridiculous girl sitting on your lap like some kind of circus act, and then you drag me down the hallway like I belong to you. Do you get some twisted satisfaction from this?”

Adrian said nothing.

“You insulted me,” she continued, her voice shaking now. “In front of everyone. And then you act like I am the problem.” She laughed bitterly and threw her hands up. “What the hell do you even want from me?”

That was when Adrian moved.

In two long strides he closed the distance between them, backing her up until her shoulders hit the wall. His hands came down on either side of her head, trapping her in place. His eyes were dark, stormy, filled with something raw and uncontrollable.

“You,” he said quietly.

Before she could respond, his mouth was on hers. The kiss was hard and consuming, driven by jealousy that had been coiling inside him for far too long. It was not gentle. It was possessive, desperate, as if he was trying to pour every unspoken emotion into that single moment.

Lydia froze at first, her hands pressing against his chest in shock. Adrian did not pull away. He stayed close, his forehead resting against hers for a heartbeat, breathing hard, as though daring her to push him back again.

Slowly, something shifted. Her resistance weakened, her fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt instead of pushing him away. When he kissed her again, it was deeper, slower, charged with obsession and longing. His hand slid to her waist, anchoring her there like he was afraid she might disappear if he let go.

The jealousy was still there, burning hot beneath the surface, but now it tangled with something far more dangerous. Need.

When he finally pulled back, his lips hovered close to hers, his voice low and strained. “I cannot stand the thought of anyone else making you smile.”

Adrian did not move away. His forehead stayed pressed to hers, his breath uneven, his grip still firm at her waist as if letting go was not an option he was willing to consider.

“You are my girlfriend,” he said, his voice low and rough, every word heavy with conviction. “You are the woman I see beside me in the future. My wife.”

Lydia’s breath caught, her anger clashing violently with the intensity in his eyes.

“I cannot stand it,” Adrian continued, jealousy bleeding into every syllable. “I cannot stand watching someone else make you smile, watching them think they have any right to you. No one gets to look at you like that. No one gets to touch you. No one gets to make you laugh the way I should.”

Her heart pounded as his thumb brushed along her jaw, possessive yet trembling, as if the restraint he was holding onto was already fraying.

“You are mine,” he murmured.

Before she could argue, before she could throw another accusation at him, he kissed her again. This time it was slower but deeper, filled with obsession and longing rather than raw anger. The kiss lingered, unrelenting, as though he was trying to prove something, trying to reclaim ground he thought he had lost.

The jealousy in him had not faded, but it had transformed into something heavier, more dangerous, wrapping itself around both of them as the kiss stretched on, leaving the air thick with everything they refused to say out loud.

Adrian’s lips lingered against hers, his hands holding her like he would never let go. Every word he had spoken, every ounce of possessiveness and jealousy, hung in the air between them, suffocating and intoxicating all at once.

Lydia’s chest heaved, her anger and humiliation rising faster than her fear. She pushed against him, finally finding enough strength to shove him away. “Enough!” she shouted, her voice cracking. “I am not yours to claim!”

Adrian blinked, startled, his grip faltering for the first time. That was all the opening she needed. Without another word, Lydia lifted her hand and slapped him across the face. The sharp sound echoed through the empty classroom, reverberating off the walls.

Pain, shock, and fury flashed across Adrian’s face, but Lydia did not wait for his reaction. She spun on her heel and bolted for the door, her shoes scraping against the floor, her heartbeat pounding as loudly as her footsteps.

Adrian stood frozen in the center of the room, his hand instinctively going to his cheek, his eyes following her retreating figure. The classroom felt empty and silent now, but the fire in his chest had only grown hotter.