Page 344 of Scarlet Wars
Caden stilled.
His chest rose with a deep, deliberate breath, as if that one word had undone him.
For half a heartbeat, he looked at me—like he was afraid to move, afraid to breathe—before his eyes flared with everything he hadn’t dared hope for. Relief. Want. Devotion. The fierce, dangerous promise ofuslocking into place.
His hand slid to the back of my neck, firm and sure now, like he didn’t want to risk letting me go. My heart slammed painfully against my chest as he leaned in, so close his breath skimmed my lips, his scent—blackcurrant and charcoal, dark and smoky—completely consuming.
“Glad that’s settled,” he said quietly, his voice rougher now, edged with something deeper. “But there’s one more thing.”
I barely dared to move. “What is it?” I whispered, already breathless.
His gaze sharpened, something dangerous settling back into place. “I don’t tolerate lies in my Collective, Emma,” he said, his tone calm in a way that made my stomach tighten. “Not even the ones you tell yourself.”
The heat between us surged like it had a will of its own. He was inches from me now, no space, no air, no time left to pretend.
His other hand rose, fingers skimming the side of my throat, slowly.
“What would I lie about?” My heart was pounding so loud I couldn’t think. He was so close, and all I could think was,not close enough.
His mouth brushed my ear, breath scorching hot. “You’d lie about pretty much everything.”
I closed my eyes, drowning in him, the promise something wicked flooding my system.
His nose dragged slowly down to the spot right beneath my ear, where he inhaled deeply, groaned like he couldn’t help himself.
“Tell me you don’t want to be with me,” he murmured, lips grazing my neck.
A tremble ran down my spine, and I instinctively tilted my head to give him more access, barely stopping the moan rising in my throat.
“Tell me you don’t want me to kiss you right now,” he growled, teeth scraping against my skin before he bit, not hard, but enough to make me gasp. It was a mark. A claim. A brand.
He pulled back just enough to look me in the eyes.
His were molten, rage and need and something deeper, something vulnerable. “Tell me you don’tloveme.”
I stared up at him, trembling. “I can’t.”
His eyes darkened. “Why not?”
“Because you told me not to lie.”
He didn’t hesitate.
His lips crashed into mine, hard, fast, and devastating.
Cadendevouredme.
His hand still at the back of my head threaded into my hair, pulling it, holding me exactly where he wanted me. The other was still clamped around my throat—firm, not cruel, but absolute—keeping me still as his tongue demanded entrance.
He kissed me like he was punishing me for every moment we’d spent apart. Tongue thrusting into my mouth, biting my lip, breathing me in like I was oxygen and fire at the same time.
Pleasure pooled in my stomach and shot between my thighs like a spark catching gasoline. I shifted against him, seeking it, chasing the friction.
I moaned into him, and that sound shattered whatever restraint he had left. He slammed me back until my spine met the wall, his thigh sliding between mine, locking me in place.
“You moan like that again,” he growled, teeth scraping my jaw, “and I’m going to lose whatever control I have left.”
I moaned.
