Inside Delilah's empty room, the silence seemed to hold everything within. The dim light filtering through the window barely illuminated the space, and yet, for her, the air was completely filled with Cain's presence.
His fragrance invaded every one of her senses.
Being alone with him felt, unexpectedly, far more dangerous than any court intrigue or the intimidating power of Neil Bathory.
Once inside the room, Cain led her to the bed and let her sit upon it. Delilah remained there without lifting her head, barely observing her own hands while trying to understand what was actually happening. She knew he was watching her. She could feel his attention fixed on every small movement of her nervous body.
—The man you love...
Cain's voice was low.
His fingers approached slowly and brushed away the dark hair that partially covered Delilah's cheeks, revealing a flush she preferred not to explain. The girl bowed her head again. She moved back a few inches on the bed until she lay down, turning her back to him as if that gesture could hide her shame.
She had allowed everything to reach this point.
However, Neil Bathory still occupied an uneasy corner of her thoughts, and the feeling that she was about to cross an impossible line began to weigh on her chest.
Cain observed her in silence. Seeing her like this, so vulnerable before him, awakened a desire within him that was impossible to ignore. For weeks, he had contained every impulse, every thought that brought him too close to her. But at that moment, he felt the certainty that if he did not do something now, Delilah would disappear from his life forever.
He climbed onto the bed without hesitation.
He approached from behind, where her dark hair prevented him from seeing her expression, and stopped trying to control the feelings he had repressed for so long. His breath softly brushed the nape of Delilah's neck, causing her heartbeat to accelerate immediately. He wrapped his arms around her from behind.
But even that embrace proved insufficient.
—Delilah... stay with me. Do not go anywhere.
His voice sounded sincere, open, stripped of any pride. He did not want her to misinterpret his intentions, even if that confession revealed how vulnerable he truly felt. The words compressed Delilah's chest. Cain buried his face in her dark hair, waiting for the barrier of indifference she had always shown to finally break.
—I wonder if I can do something like that...
Delilah's voice came out weak, almost lost as her gaze drifted to the walls of the room. She responded with caution. She still feared that this moment would end just like the night of the first kiss, when Cain had turned back into a distant and unreachable figure.
—Do you regret confessing that I am the man you love?
The flush deepened on Delilah's cheeks. She silently thanked the fact that they were not face to face. She could not have endured the humiliation of exposing her feelings while he looked directly at her.
—I thought that reliable and loyal men did not eavesdrop on others' conversations —she murmured with an attempt at irony—. Especially if they belong to a lady as noble as Eilith.
Cain let out a sigh.
His figure leaned over her with an overwhelming presence. He shifted his position slightly until he was practically over Delilah, maintaining only the distance necessary to breathe.
—I heard nothing that was not mine to hear —he responded—. After all, I was the protagonist of that conversation.
Delilah closed her eyes and covered her face with her hands, unable to sustain the intensity of that moment. But Cain did not allow her to hide. He knew he had to be more direct if he wanted to reach the sincere heart she kept hidden.
He leaned down slowly.
Their lips met in a deep and passionate kiss, one that could steal her breath away in mere seconds. Delilah's breathing became unstable and uneven as her eyes flew open in surprise, only to close again, unable to withstand the overwhelming intensity of that contact. She remembered their first kiss, but now understood that it had only been a beginning.
She accepted the kiss that Cain prolonged with patience, allowing each second to feel like a flame of fire coursing through every inch of her body, awakening desires and needs long dormant within her. The fears and insecurities of both seemed to dissipate in that moment.
Cain's mouth dominated hers with a softness that bordered on dangerous, a mix of gentleness and desire that slowly weakened the resistance she had maintained. His tongue explored, tasted and reveled in every corner of her mouth.
Delilah's breath caught in a soft, shaky moan as Cain slid his fingers along her figure with caution and desire, her body responding to his touch with electrifying sensitivity.
Their clothes began to feel like an irritating barrier, one that both desperately wanted to remove. Cain's hands slid beneath the fabric, caressing the smooth, heated skin as he moved instinctively.
The kisses grew more demanding, the breathing heavier and more uneven. Delilah's legs wrapped around Cain's waist, pulling him closer.
Cain paused at the curve of her breast, feeling the rapid pulse pounding beneath his lips. Delilah arched her back, her cries growing louder and more desperate as Cain's caresses descended lower and lower.
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