chapter eighteen
576 Words
Chapter Eighteen
The hallway was dim as Damien led her toward his room—not hers.
Sienna’s breath caught in her throat. This wasn’t a slip of emotion or an accidental encounter. This was intentional.
He opened the door, and she stepped inside, heart pounding.
The room was massive—masculine, sharp edges softened only by shadows and the faint scent of him lingering in the air. Everything inside screamed control, discipline… but tonight, there was a thread unraveling.
“You’ve never brought me here,” she said softly.
“You weren’t ready,” he murmured, closing the door behind them.
“And now?”
He stepped closer, eyes dark, unreadable. “Now I’m the one who’s not ready.”
That confession cracked something open inside her.
But Sienna didn’t move. She waited. Watched.
Damien sighed, dragging a hand through his hair. “I told myself I’d never do this. Not with someone like you.”
“Someone like me?”
He looked at her, and for once… he looked gutted. “Soft. Good. Real.”
Her eyes welled. “Then why let me stay?”
“Because I’m selfish,” he confessed. “And because when I wake up next to you… the silence doesn’t feel so loud.”
Sienna stepped forward, placing her hand over his heart. It was racing.
“You don’t have to run from this,” she whispered. “Not from me.”
Damien’s hand covered hers. “I don’t know how to do this, Sienna.”
“Then let’s figure it out together.”
His lips brushed her forehead, barely there. Then her cheek. And when she tilted her head, their mouths met again—but this time, it was slower. More tender.
Damien didn’t touch her like he owned her.
He touched her like she meant something.
His hand slid behind her neck, fingers trembling slightly as he deepened the kiss. Her body melted against his, heat blooming under her skin.
“Tell me to stop,” he whispered, voice hoarse.
Sienna looked into his eyes. “Don’t stop.”
He kissed her again, harder now. Desperate. Their breaths tangled as he backed her toward the bed. But before they touched the sheets, he stopped.
His forehead rested against hers, both of them gasping.
“I’m not ready to take everything from you,” Damien murmured. “Not when I don’t know if I can give it all back.”
Sienna’s eyes glistened. “I’m not asking for everything. Just you.”
That broke him.
He kissed her again, but this time, it was different.
More than desire.
It was the kind of kiss that meant something. The kind of kiss you only gave when you were beginning to fall.
---
Later, she lay in his arms beneath the sheets. Fully clothed, but more exposed than ever.
Damien’s hand drew lazy circles across her back. “They’ll hate this, you know.”
“Your family?”
“They already do.”
She chuckled softly. “Good.”
He blinked, then actually smiled. “You’re dangerous.”
“I learned from the best.”
He pulled her closer. “If anyone tries to take you from me, Sienna—”
“They won’t.”
He looked into her eyes. “But if they try... I’ll burn this world down.”
She didn’t flinch.
Because for the first time... she believed him.
And for the first time... she wanted him to.
- Writer
