CHAPTER 17— Comfort That Burns
896 Words
The room was silent except for Vionn’s ragged breathing.
Kaela stood there, heart thumping against her ribs, trying to process everything he’d said. The Shadow. Adriana. The curse. And now… her.
Her throat tightened.
She could still feel the heat of his hands on her waist, the tremble in his voice, the way he looked like he was on the edge of breaking apart.
“Vionn,” she whispered softly, “sit down. Please.”
He didn’t move.
He stood like a statue carved from pain, fists clenched, jaw locked so tight she could see the muscle twitching violently.
“Vionn…” Kaela stepped closer and gently touched his hand.
He flinched.
Not from her—
but from everything he’d been holding in.
Finally, he let her guide him to the edge of her bed. He sat heavily, elbows on his knees, head hanging low like the weight of his past was dragging him downward.
Kaela knelt in front of him.
His head snapped up immediately, eyes wide.
“Kaela—no. Don’t kneel in front of me.”
She held his gaze, steady and soft.
“Then let me be here. Let me help. For once, let me hold you together.”
His breath shook, the control slipping again.
Kaela gently placed her hands on his thighs, warm, grounding.
Vionn froze.
“Look at me,” she whispered.
He did.
And god—there was so much in his eyes.
Fear.
Guilt.
Possession.
Need.
“I’m not Adriana,” Kaela said quietly. “And you’re not going to lose me.”
The tension in his chest snapped—just a little—just enough.
A broken sound left him, barely audible but raw enough to make her chest ache.
Kaela moved closer, sliding between his knees so she could reach his face. She cupped his jaw with both hands, thumbs brushing the corners of his lips.
He shut his eyes like her touch burned.
“Kaela…”
His voice was low, shaking.
“You shouldn’t be this close.”
“Why?” she whispered. “Because you want me?”
His eyes flew open—dark, wild, tortured.
He didn’t answer.
He didn’t have to.
Kaela leaned in, forehead against his.
He inhaled sharply, like he’d been starved of air until now.
“I’m here,” she murmured. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Vionn’s hands moved hesitantly—one resting on her waist, the other sliding up her back, fingers trembling.
Not from desire.
From fear of breaking her.
“Kaela,” he breathed, voice hoarse, “I’m losing myself.”
“Then lose yourself with me.”I am your wife don’t Forgot it~
That did it.
Vionn pressed his forehead harder to hers, eyes squeezed shut, breath trembling against her lips. He wasn’t kissing her—god, he was fighting it with everything he had.
“Don’t say that,” he whispered, voice cracking.
“You don’t know what that does to me.”
Kaela lifted her hand to his hair, fingers threading gently through the dark strands.
He shuddered. Hard.
“I know what it does,” she said softly.
“And I want it.”
His breath caught.
Then—very slowly, like he was afraid to scare her away—his hands slid to her face. His thumbs brushed her cheekbones, reverent, shaking.
“Kaela…” he breathed.
“If I touch you now… I won’t stop.”
Her pulse jumped.
“Maybe I don’t want you to stop.”
His control shattered.
A low, guttural sound escaped him as he pulled her closer—closer until her legs brushed his, until her breath mingled with his, until their hearts beat against each other’s skin through the thin layers of clothing.
He didn’t kiss her.
Not yet.
Instead, he leaned down and pressed his face into the side of her neck, breathing her in like she was the only thing holding him to this world.
Kaela’s breath hitched as his lips brushed her throat—not kissing, just… trembling there.
“Kaela,” he whispered into her skin.
“You make me feel alive. And that terrifies me.”
She slid her arms around him, pulling him into her embrace.
He melted—slow at first, then completely—burying himself against her, arms wrapping around her waist, holding her like she was the last safe place left.
She felt his breath, warm and uneven, against the curve of her collarbone.
Her fingers stroked his hair gently.
“Vionn… I’m right here.”
He tightened his hold, pulling her onto his lap without even realizing he’d done it.
This time she didn’t stop him.
Their bodies aligned.
Warm.
Close.
Dangerously intimate.
Vionn’s hands settled on her hips, gripping them desperately—like he needed the feel of her to stay grounded.
His voice was a low rasp against her shoulder.
“I don’t deserve you.”
Kaela tilted his head up.
“You do.”
His breath hitched—
And for a moment, he almost kissed her.
Their lips brushed—barely, achingly, like a promise too fragile to speak aloud.
But he pulled back just enough to breathe.
“Kaela… if I kiss you now…”
His voice trembled.
“I’ll never let you go.”
She touched her forehead to his again, whispering:
“Then don’t.”
- Writer
