Almost
309 Words
Chapter Nine
His face was inches from mine, so close I could feel the warmth of his breath, the steady thrum of his heartbeat against my chest. The world shrank until there was only him—his fiery eyes, his hand gripping my wrist, his lips hovering like a dangerous promise.
Every instinct screamed at me to move. To shove him away. To remind him—and myself—of who we were.
But I couldn’t.
My body refused to obey, frozen between terror and desire, my pulse hammering so loudly I was sure he could hear it.
“You want me to stop,” he murmured, his voice a low growl. “Say it.”
I opened my mouth, but no words came.
The silence stretched, thick and suffocating.
Then, mercifully—or cruelly—the sound of voices drifted around the corner. Students heading toward the parking lot.
He cursed under his breath and tore his gaze away, but his hand didn’t leave mine. Not until the group passed. Not until the danger of being caught was gone.
When he finally released me, I stumbled back, gasping like I’d just surfaced from deep water.
“This—this can’t happen,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “You’re my stepbrother. Everyone already hates me just for being near you. If they ever found out—”
His jaw tightened. His eyes blazed with something untamed. “Let them hate. I don’t care. You’re mine, whether the world likes it or not.”
And before I could argue, before I could even breathe, he turned and walked away, leaving me trembling against the cold brick wall.
I pressed a hand to my racing heart, whispering to myself.
“This is wrong. This has to be wrong.”
But the echo of his touch burned hotter than any shame.
- Writer
