Her guard, her temptation

11

kaira astor

"Did you f**k him?" The question rolls off my tongue before I have a chance to swallow it. I pull the cuffs of my hoodie over my hands and fidget with my fingers, twisting the silver rings around my fingers. Amara halts in front of my mirror, the brush halfway down her golden strands. "Who?" She teases, the edge of her lips tilting up into a sly smirk. I clench my jaw. All throughout the dinner, she kept glancing at Zyran, her eyes swirling with seduction, and he held her stares, not once looking at me. After the conversation she had with my parents, he didn't look at me once-- his eyes firmly locked onto Amara.

They must've done something, must've said something. My stomach twists and my fingers roll into fists. I hate him, he hates me, but the fact that he must've done something with her after what happened in the gym, angers me. "Because you're going to have to be more specific." She drawls out, her voice sultry as she places the brush down on my dresser, spinning around to meet my gaze, her silky, white gown flowing. "The list is long," She lifts a shoulder up into a shrug, sauntering over to my bed, her hips swaying. Everything about Amara is sensual. Why wouldn't they sleep together?

Zyran is intense and demanding and annoyingly attractive. Just holding eye-contact with him for a few minutes can rile up any woman, I'm sure of it. His gaze alone is demanding and so utterly attractive that it feels like his eyes sets my skin on fire-- and that's not even the physical part. Zyran is built like a Greek God-- no, a warrior--with broad shoulders, muscled arms that look like it's been carved out of stone. His six-foot-something towering body is enough to make any woman drool, along with the tattoos and scars littering his body. And, his face. f**k. Zyran reminds me of a caged panther, ready to pounce. Exactly Amara's type.

I'm guessing Amara is exactly Zyran's type. She's everyone's type. With all her curves and blonde strands, and snake eyes and seductive smirks. I grit my teeth together, "Zyran." My tone is more aggressive than I want it to be. Amara's snake eyes flash and her grin widens. Shaking her head slightly, she sinks down on the edge of my bed, leaning forward to rest on her elbow, facing me. "No," Relief floods through my body. Only because I don't want my best friend to f**k the man I despise, I tell myself. "Not yet, anyway."

My shoulders immediately stiffen. Zyran is the type that will mess around with Amara, I just know it. Despite the fact that Amara does the same, I don't want my friend to get hurt by him. "He's the devil." I bristle, blowing tendrils of my hair out of my face. Amara rolls her green eyes, heaving her hair over her shoulders. "Babe, the devil wishes he was Zyran." Green eyes gleam as she stares at me, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her silky dress. I scoff, shaking my head. "He might be attractive, Amara, but his personality is ugly." At this point, I feel like I'm scolding her. She shift, falling down on her back and stares up at my ceiling. "Christ, Kai, I just want to f**k him, not marry him." She drags strands of her hair through her fingers. "I honestly don't give a f**k about his personality, he could be as dry as bread and I still wouldn't care." Her words are like bullets to my chest, my lungs ceasing to accept oxygen.

Bitterness coats the inside of my chest, dripping into my heart like drops of rain. What the f**k? I huff out a breath of air, my eyes stinging as they bore into the white wall. She just wants to f**k him, no strings attached. So, why does that still bother me? My fingernails dig into the tender skin of my palm. "Anyway, enough about my s*x life." Amara sighs, rolling over onto her stomach, and places her chin onto her palm, her eyes roving over my face. "How excited are you about the fact that your parents said yes?" Excitement pours into my chest and my lips stretch into a wide grin. "I literally can't wait." I beam, sitting up straight and run my fingers through my hair. In a week, I'm going to Oakland with Amara... and Zyran.

----

"Wake up." The voice grumbles and I groan, rolling over on my side, tightening my hold on the blanket, pushing my face into a warm palm. "Wake the f**k up." The voice is close to my face, nearly whispering the words into my ear and a moan escapes my lips. I don't want to wake up, I want to sleep. The palm against my cheek flexes and my eyebrows cave in, callous and rough skin gliding over my skin. Zyran. My body stiffens. "Princess, wake up before I suffocate you," His threat hangs in the air between us, my breath hitching in my throat when Zyran shifts his hand, sliding his palm over my mouth, his fingertips pressing into my cheeks.

My eyelids flutter open, wide. Forest green fills my vision, piercing through my hues. I'm pinned to the bed by shock and something else. "Are you awake, now?" He asks, his voice a whisper of danger. My head jerks into a nod, his fingers flexing around my jaw, his lips twitching into a smirk as dark as the storm brewing in his eyes. My chest rises and falls with uneven breathes, heat flows down my body and tingles spread over my thighs. The need to snap at him is a faint flashing warning in the back of my mind. Right now, all I can think of is the pressure of his hand over my jaw, the feel of his callous fingers digging into the soft skin of my cheeks.

The sinful emotions that swirl in his eyes cause me to clench my thighs. His ravenous eyes dip down to my chest, his head tilting, strands of his silky hair falling over his forehead. His tongue swiftly darts over his bottom lip. Lifting his head, his eyes flick between mine. "Yeah?" I feel so exposed, my fingers digging into the material of the sheets beneath me. His hold on my jaw loosens. "You seem to be more than awake right now," His voice is low, a dangerous tone. His other hand lifts, his large palm moving toward me and my chest caves in. His pupils expand, swallowing the green in his eyes. I'm f*****g burning, so near exploding that my ears ring. He leans forward, my lips trembling behind his palm, ragged breathes huffing from my nose.

His scent invades my senses, mint and forest, the smell strong. Zyran's face is mere inches away from mine and at the moment, I'm grateful for his hand around my mouth, afraid that if it wasn't, I just might've done something stupid, like lean up and brush my lips against the man that I hate. Hating him doesn't make him any less attractive. Every thought in my brain demands of me to fight, to fight against him and the hold he has on me, to demand he let me go-- f**k, to open my mouth and bite him until he bleeds.

But, I don't. Every muscle in my body strained by the intoxicating desire that rains down on my body. Frozen in my spot as his demanding figure towers over me, holding me hostage by the gleam of mischief in his eyes. My core clenches and unclenches when his thumb grazes over the side of my jaw. "For a princess, I expected you to yearn for softness, gentle touches and whispered beautiful nothing's," Zyran taunts, his eyes unblinking as he stares at me. My jaw locks, fire blooming in the pit of my stomach. "But you're no princess, are you?" darkness weaves into every word that leaks from his mouth, and my eyes drop to the plush skin of his lips. Only for a second, a mere second.

His eyes flash, darkening. Slanting his eyes to the side, he leans forward, his cheek grazing against mine. A shudder rolls down my spine, spiking directly between my legs and I nearly moan. "I told you, I don't tolerate tardiness. Next time, I won't just stop with my hand over your mouth." Cold breath falls over my ear, goosebumps erupting over my skin. His voice. f**k. My eyes glaze at his words, the ceiling fan blurring.

All the warmth consumes me and the next second, he pulls away completely, coldness creeping into my bones and I gasp in a lung full of air, blinking rapidly up at him. His eyes sweep over me, lingering on my heated cheeks. "Get dressed." His tone falls back to being blank, the intensity in his eyes draining away. Turning, he leaves my room, as if he was never here in the first place.