Chapter 34
Chapter 34
“Dear invertebrates, please welcome me to your team.” I squeezed my eyes shut and with a clenched heart accepted my fate. But after a few seconds–seconds that felt like a lifetime–something unexpected happened. My body never hit the ground,
That inevitable impact which I had braced myself for, it never came. There was no sharp pain, no crashing thud. I just felt… held, hanging.
I opened my eyes, slowly at first, hesitant to face the reality of whatever was happening. And then I saw him–Kaiden. His arms were wrapped around me, holding me steady, his grip firm as he caught me mid–fall. His face was inches from mine, his eyes filled with something I couldn’t quite place–concern, amusement, maybe a little bit of annoyance.
“You saved me,” I murmured, the words slipping from my lips before I could stop them. It wasn’t just a statement; it was a fact, a truth that had somehow taken shape in the chaos of the moment.
“Yes, I saved you,” he replied with a poker face. The poker face that I wasn’t habituated of. The poker face that told me to take him seriously. The poker face that screamed the fact that he is not in his teasing or smirking mood and I don’t why, I felt a little disappointed.
“Then put me down,” I demanded, my voice firm despite the way my heart pounded in my chest. I squirmed slightly in his arms, trying to free myself from the unexpected intimacy of being held so closely.
The dampened warmth of his chest against my arm made my skin tingle, and I was suddenly aware of the fact that he is not wearing anything in his top. I teared my eyes from his face and looked at his body. I was right, he was wearing nothing except for the towel just wrapped around his waist.
“Oh my god! You are wearing nothing. Ew! Put me down. before.
uti
me down. Put me down. Right now.” I struggled harder than
“Okay, okay, calm down,” Kaiden said, his voice cutting through the tension. “I’m putting you down. Don’t worry, I’m not going to sweep you off and run away to the moon.”
I shot him an incredulous look, but before I could say anything, I heard a voice from behind the door.
“Mr. Kaiden, are you ready? Everyone is waiting for you for breakfast. How long is it going to take?”
The server’s voice was polite, but there was an edge of impatience to it. I could almost picture the perfectly poised staff member standing on the other side, waiting for Kaiden to make his appearance.
A rush of panic surged through me, overwhelming and unbidden, and before I could think, my arms moved on their own. In an instant, I wrapped them around Kaiden’s shoulders, clinging to him with a desperation I couldn’t explain. My face nestled against his shoulder, the warmth of his skin and the steady rhythm of his breaths grounding me in a way I hadn’t realized I so desperately needed.
The steady rise and fall of his chest against mine should have been calming, a reminder of normalcy, but instead, my attention latched onto the rapid pounding of his heartbeat. It echoed against my skin, loud and unrelenting.
It wasn’t this fast before.
The sound filled the fragile silence between us, racing as if it were trying to outpace the weight of the moment. His scent surrounded me–a clean, heady mix of fresh body wash and something distinctly him. It wasn’t just comforting; it was magnetic, the kind of smell that seeped into your memory, refusing to let go.
Kaiden went rigid, his entire body stiffening beneath my touch. For a moment, he didn’t move, as though unsure of how to respond. Then his voice broke the silence, low and tinged with surprise.
“What are you doing?”
1/2
Chapter 34
I swallowed hard, suddenly aware of how foolish I must have looked. My heart was racing, not just from the fear of getting caught, but from something deeper I couldn’t explain. “I… I just… Mom’s gonna kill me if she’ll know that I was in your room.” I stammered, my voice sounding weaker than I intended.
A soft chuckle escaped him, low and warm. “Don’t worry,” he said, his tone laced with amusement. “They won’t come in without my permission.”
He was right. I realized then how pointless my panic was, and a rush of embarrassment warmed my cheeks. “That makes sense,” I murmured, pulling my face away from the curve of his shoulder. But as I looked up, my gaze collided with his.
His hazel eyes held mine, a deep, mesmerizing ocean of gold and green that seemed to drown out everything else. My thoughts scattered, leaving only the unspoken tension crackling between us.
“And you know what doesn’t make sense?” he asked, his voice deep and deliberate, his words dragging me further into whatever spell he seemed to cast so effortlessly.
“What?” I replied instinctively, as though his eyes had hypnotized me, leaving me unable to do anything but respond.
He shifted slightly, gesturing toward the mirror on his closet door. “You hanging on me like this,” he said, his tone laced with teasing, though the weight of his words settled heavily in the room.
My gaze flickered to the reflection. There we were, caught in the glossy surface–him holding me effortlessly in his arms, and me clinging to him, arms wrapped around his shoulders as if I had every right to be there. As if I belonged there.
Heat rushed to my face, the sight almost too intimate, too raw. I dropped my arms abruptly, trying to disentangle myself from the moment, but his grip didn’t falter, steady and sure, keeping me where I was.
“Now, may I?” he asked, his tone low, laced with a mix of patience along with amusement.
“Yeah,” I said slowly, my voice quiet, tinged with embarrassment.
He nodded slightly, the smirk lingering as he crouched just enough to lower me carefully. As my feet met the floor, I jumped down the last inch, landing smoothly. The warmth of his hands faded as he stepped back, and I suddenly missed the steadiness they provided.
“Sir?” The server’s voice came from behind the closed door again, sharper this time.
Kaiden glanced toward the door, his jaw tightening slightly in annoyance before he called out, “Yeah, give me five.” His tone was calm but firm, his attention briefly drawn away, though his presence still filled the room like a tangible force.
To be continued…
AD
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