crossfire, cardan | 16 +

fourteen

"Hello there,"

He looks up at me with a smile on his face and his hands resting on the arm of the chair with a slack grasp on his wine glass.

He's up to no good.

"Hello my lord," I say through the same smile.

"You look...Elegant." He mocks lightheartedly.

I playfully roll my eyes as I take a seat in the armchair next to him. I scratch an itch on my left arm and set the armor on the chair next to where I'm sitting. "Yesterday was quite the day," I added. I took a deep breath, pouring myself a glass of wine.

"You seem worn out." He notes out, sounding mildly concerned.

I rub my eyes with my free hand, attempting to stop my eyes from blurring everything I see. "Hardly slept, spent all day training alongside Jude," I say.

"Why don't you rest here for a while? Inside, there is a room, "He offers.

I wish I could accept, but I have another training session with the Court of Shadows.

"No," I say, wearing a tired smile. "I think I'll just stay here."

His lustfully roving eyes go over my body, making my skin burn up. His eyes frequently stop in sight of my lips, eyes, or other areas of my body as they dart from one limb to another. Even though I hate him, no, loathe him, I couldn't help but notice how handsome he is.

My thoughts are becoming jumbled and mixed up as a result of the alcohol, which is starting to affect my perception. I struggle to focus, but all I can make out is him and his lips. My pulse quickens and my heart beats faster. Just the thought of his lips pressing against mine is loud enough to drown out all other thoughts.

Of course. Lustful wine.

Stop it, Anastasia. I want to tell myself, You're fantasizing about your means to an end? That's pathetic.

However, a part of me yearns for the validation of skin, the roughness of his palm, and the sensual taste of his lips, addressing every square inch of my body and not skipping a single inch.

I want to know what that feels like. What it feels like to have the future king of Elfhame stiffen at my touch.

"Is it wrong of me to want to kiss you?" Before setting the glass down on the desk, I blurt out while unconsciously taking a second drink of the wine. I scoff at my careless mistake, "I'm sorry, that was not... This wine is getting to me," I stand up and straighten my crumpled attire and his eyes flit to me.

"No," he says, getting up from the chair. As the space between us grew thinner, he edged closer to me. My hands are firmly gripping the edge of his desk where I'm frozen, and the wood is chipping my nails. My heart is practically audible in my chest as his body presses against mine, and I can feel it beating there. He tucks a strand of my unruly hair behind my ear while gazing into my eyes with a seductive hunger. "I crave the same."

My mind is clouded by the way his chest rests against mine, the way he leans onto me, the way his breath lashes against my face, and the way his lips are the sole target of mine while his gaze intimidates me in every way. My body also struggles to know how to respond.

The sudden churn in my gut overwhelms me, and I feel my pulse go out of control. My body feels strange and like it demands to be touched, and the only person who can give it to me is him. Both our breathing is intense, as though we've been running a marathon.

Is this what pure lust feels like?

With no more thought about the situation, I crash my lips against his, and he kisses me back with no hesitation. We continue to make out fiercely and more greedily than before as his tongue slides against my lower lip and my hands go for his golden hair, running into the back of it and grabbing it. It seems as though we have both been craving this moment for far too long.