Chapter 9
1400 Words
Celeste's POV.
The minute I set my eyes on Adrian Sinclair, I two things struck me - he was dangerous - dangerously attractive, and he knew it.
The way he walked into the room graciously, like he called the shots. Effortlessly charming, the kind women fell for without realizing they were falling. A flirtatious smile, and those eyes? They were fine as hell.
Killian introduced us briefly with no warmth in his tone and no arms on my back like couples usually did. Just my name, said like It meant nothing.
I swallowed hard.
But when Adrian looked at me, something changed.
His gaze lingered.
He took my hand gently. “Celeste,” he said, brushing it with a touch that lingered too long. "Now I understand why Killian suddenly stopped returning my calls.”
I gave him a light smile and pulled away. “You’re mistaken. I'm not the reason, we are not close.”
I didn’t miss the way Killian’s jaw ticked.
Later that evening, Adrian found me in the library. I hated the long weekend that felt like forever. I needed to get back to work as soon as possible, whether people were going to get suspicious about the no honeymoon or not, I didn't care.
“You know,” he said, settling into the armchair across mine.
“If you ever get bored of the 'royal prince,' you could try a man who actually knows how to laugh. What do you think?”
I closed my book, my expression neutral. I was beginning to get annoyed at the audacity, but what could I do? Not like Killian gave a f**k that his best friend was making advances at his wife. To him, I was just another contract.
“I’m not interested in men who try to collect women like accessories,” I said in a disgusted tone.
He smirked. “You'll soon be interested.” He ran his eyes through my face in a flirty manner, then fixed them on my lips, not hiding the yearning look he had in his eyes.
"I know." He added confidently.
“Goodnight, Mr. Sinclair.” I made my way outside.
The days that followed were filled with undeniable tension.
Adrian kept lingering too long, watching me unapologetically, and Killian knew it. He saw everything. I had no intention of playing anyone’s game, but the mansion had turned into a quiet battlefield.
I noticed the way Killian’s jaw would tighten when Adrian sat too close. How he’d find reasons to stay longer at breakfast if Adrian did. The way his voice changed whenever my name came up. There was something behind that cold mask—and it wasn’t indifference.
Adrian was testing boundaries.
But Killian?
He was cracking.
The breaking point came at the night of the gala.
It was lavish, political, powerful people, glass chandeliers, the richest people all over the world meeting casually.
I wore gold silk—backless, high-slit, my confidence intact as I made heads turn.
Killian’s eyes followed me down the stairs, taking in every inch of my beauty. He didn’t say a word. He didn't have to. His eyes already burned as he swallowed hard. That was enough for me.
He offered his arm.
“I almost forgot we're supposed to be keeping up appearances,” I said lightly, taking it.
“You enjoy getting under my skin,” he muttered.
“Don't flatter yourself. I'd rather get under anywhere else.”
A few hours later, it was time for the dance. Killian was nowhere to be found, so I danced alone.
Moving my hips to the beat of the soft music with my eyes closed, until...
"Can I dance with you?"
Adrian interrupted.
"Am I such a bad dancer?" I chuckled. Then my eyes caught Killian at the corner of the room, sitting with businessmen, legs crossed, sipping liquor, his cold piercing eyes fixed on mine like they were going to devour me.
"No, you're not. I just don't want people to see how amazing you are. I'm the only one permitted to see you dance like that."
I ignored him. I didn't know how to deal with flirts, but I agreed to dance with him.
He twirled me, dipped me low, and whispered in my ear, “He doesn’t deserve you.”
I stayed quiet. Killian, sat there, watching every step, his eyes darkening every second.
I didn’t know what it was that passed between us, but it felt like fire and ice colliding.
When the music ended, I excused myself and headed towards the garden. I needed air. The tension was suffocating.
Minutes later, I heard voices.
Familiar. Muffled but sharp.
I moved closer behind the stone wall.
Killian and Adrian.
“You don’t get to be jealous,” Adrian said. “You barely act like she exists.”
“She’s f*****g married, Adrian.” Killian roared. "To me!"
Adrian’s voice was calm.
“So? You said it yourself - it’s just a contract. Don't act like you care about her, you don't..”
There was a pause - pure silence.
“You stay away from her. This is the final warning.” Killian warned.
Adrian laughed. “You don’t even touch her. I freaking know you don't! But do you want to keep her like some prized toy? I'm not going to let you.”
I waited for Killian’s reply, but the sound of a glass shattering on the ground came instead.
Adrian’s POV.
Even though things were starting to get heated between me and Killian, I still didn't regret coming to visit the time I did.
He was married to a goddess he didn't deserve.
The second I set my eyes on Celeste, I knew she was everything I needed in a woman - classy, gorgeous, smart, f*****g attractive.
Her lips, God knows I would give anything to have a taste of them. I wanted Celeste so bad, so maybe it was a good thing that my best friend just married her out of responsibility, not for love.
So maybe I still had a chance, if I played my cards right.
She doesn’t even realize what she does to people, me in particular.
To men like Killian, she’s probably just a tool for power.
But to me?
She’s a puzzle I want to solve… and keep for myself alone.
That body? I wanted to be the first to know what she tasted like down there. I wanted to be the first and only one to know how it feels moving inside her. I knew a virgin when I saw one.
At first, I was curious. Killian never allowed anyone close to him, and yet he married her—a woman who walks like she commands the earth beneath her heels and speaks like every word is calculated. He even acted so possessive about her.
But now, I'm sure.
He's probably in love with her. But it's too late, because I’ve always gotten what I wanted.
And if I can’t have her?
Then no one will.
Celeste's POV.
I turned away, my heart pounding as the cool evening breeze lifted the hem of my gown. The faint sounds of laughter from the main hall echoed behind me. I needed distance—from Killian, from Adrian, from everything.
Just a breath.
Just a moment.
But something made me glance back.
Adrian was still seated where I left him, elbows on his knees, glass dangling loosely in one hand.
He wasn’t staring into thin air.
He was looking at me.
And when our eyes met, the world seemed to slow down.
It was just a second. A blink. But in that second, something shifted. Not in him, but in me.
For the first time in days, I didn’t feel like Killian’s wife. I didn’t feel like anyone’s pawn.
I just felt like myself - exposed, seen.
And I hated that I liked it.
If I'm to fall for someone else, why should it be Killian's best friend?
Adrian’s POV.
She just wore a cold expression. She didn’t smile.
She didn’t give me anything to hold on to.
But that second—that one second—was all I needed.
Because now, I knew something for certain:
She felt something for me too and I desperately needed to see her again.
And next time?
I wouldn’t just watch, not from afar like this.
- Writer
