Chapter 175 Falling in love again
~Hermes~
I pulled her close before I even realized why.
June… The name tasted strange and familiar on my tongue.
Why the hell was I thinking of Natalya while staring at the most beautiful girl I had ever seen? That was—wrong. Completely wrong.
I should be asking Ted what happened to me, why I was in the hospital, why my head felt like it was rewiring itself. Instead, my brain refused to cooperate. All I could think was: How on earth did Ted bring a girl like June into his life?
June. June. June… My mind kept chanting it, over and over. I didn’t understand why. Was this… love at first sight? With my friend’s girlfriend?
No. No. Wrong. But it felt—right.
"Hermes…"
Her soft voice cut through my spiraling thoughts. I blinked. Realization hit me—I was still holding her.
I jolted back, releasing her immediately, trying to mask the racing of my heart.
"Uh—” I waved my hands helplessly, grasping for an excuse, "I thought I saw a roach—down—down there.” I pointed vaguely at the air, desperate. Anything to stop my brain from doing something ridiculous. Falling for my friend’s girlfriend? That couldn’t be happening.
"A roach!” she shrieked, shoving closer. My instinct to catch her kicked in—but Ted was faster. He swept in, taking her to his side.
I watched them, eyes dropping. Even seeing her gently flick something from Ted’s hair made my chest tighten. Why the hell did that hurt? Jealousy. That had to be it. I was jealous. But why?
Everything about her was natural, effortless, intoxicating. My pulse throbbed in ways I couldn’t explain.
"We can’t be having that here. I’ll send for cleaners, and meanwhile, let’s get you a change of room,” Ted said, hands steady on her waist.
I clicked my tongue, muttering more to myself than anyone else, "I think I saw wrong. That… that wasn’t a roach. Just instinct."
"But, just to be sure," I added, my eyes lingering on her, "you should send for the cleaners."
Ted nodded, sensing something I wasn’t ready to name. There was a strange, unsettled peace in his chest—something he hadn’t seen before between us.
He pulled out his phone. "I’ll just make a call and tell—"
"No.” I cut in sharply, surprising even myself with how firm my voice sounded. A small, defiant smile curved my lips. I wanted her here. I wanted alone time with her—the petite, fiery girl with half-bitten lips, wide hazel eyes, and chestnut hair that refused to stay tamed. It felt traitorous… but I didn’t care.
"You should go meet them yourself,” I said. My voice was calm, but my pulse betrayed me. She could stay.
Ted smiled, leaning closer to June. "Wait for me here, Ju—babe… I’ll go check—"
And just like that, he left.
The air shifted immediately, charged. Only the two of us now.
I sat up straighter, awkwardly, fidgeting in my pyjamas. My hands tugged at my sleeves, then I ran them through my hair, trying to look… composed. Ridiculous. Completely ridiculous.
"So—how did you guys meet?” I asked, my voice rougher than intended.
There was a beat of silence. I watched her hands fold neatly in her lap, like she was rehearsing a script she’d been told to read.
And yet… my eyes lingered. On her. On the curve of her legs under the thin fabric, the softness of her hands, the gentle slope of her thighs. My body betrayed me. My cock twitched before I could stop it. Fuck. This was next-level insane.
"I was his patient… then we started talking and… hit things off…” Her voice trailed off, eyes fixed somewhere beyond me.
Confused, I lifted my gaze, following the line of her stare. She was looking past me, and I turned instinctively, trying to see what had caught her attention.
"Don’t—” she whispered, a nervous tremor in her voice as she stood carefully. "Y-you’ll scare it away."
My heart thumped in my chest. Scare what away? I wanted to ask, to step closer, to touch her just to see her flinch, but my body froze. Something primal stirred—jealousy, desire, and a flicker of memory I couldn’t place.
Her words, how she moved, the subtle scent that lingered in the air—it was too much. And yet… it was perfect.
I turn slowly and I notice it then—a small, delicate butterfly flitting just above her hand. She reaches toward it carefully, her fingers trembling slightly, and her face lights up in a soft, almost innocent smile.
"Look at it… it’s beautiful,” she whispers, voice low.
The sight of her like that—so alive, so unaware of me—pins me in place. My chest tightens, my pulse spiking. There’s something about the way her eyes follow the butterfly, how her lips part slightly… it tugs at something buried deep in me.
I take a small step closer, almost without thinking. My fingers brush hers—just the lightest contact—and a jolt shoots through me. She flinches, tiny and fragile in my grasp, but she doesn’t pull away.
"Careful,” she murmurs, still focused on the butterfly. That soft sound, her breath catching.
My stomach knots; my hands itch to move, to hold, to anchor myself to her.
The butterfly flits again, closer to her face. She gasps, stepping forward—and suddenly, she loses her balance.
"June!” I snap, lunging instinctively. My hands catch her waist before she can fall. She collapses slightly into me, chest pressed against mine, the warmth of her body scorching me.
Our eyes meet. Her wide hazel gaze locks onto mine, startled and alive, and for a moment the world narrows to just us. My mind blanks. Every nerve fires. My fingers tighten slightly around her waist. I don’t remember why it feels so right—but it does.
Heat coils in my stomach. My chest presses closer to hers. And then, as if the universe itself conspires, I feel it—that half-memory, half-instinct, that flicker from the time before I fainted, when she was mine in ways I hadn’t fully understood.
I whisper her name without thinking.
"June…” I whisper, and my stomach twists.
The fragments hit me. We were in that hotel room. The way she challenged me, teased me, made me ache in ways I didn’t think were possible. The kiss, the touch, the way she… pressed herself against me, unafraid, unapologetic.
My resolve to know our exact relationship.
She looks up at me, startled, lips parted. "Hermes?"
I swallow hard, trying to catch my breath. "C-can I kiss you again?” I murmur, voice rough, low.
Her cheeks flush, her eyes wide. She doesn’t speak. I don’t wait. I lean closer, brushing my lips against hers, just a tease, just enough to feel it again.