Oscar:
I heard the bathroom door close even though she tried her best not to let it make a sound.
A smile tugged at the corners of my lips.
My back was turned to her, my attention seemingly fixed on the dark stretch of ocean visible through the glass window glistening under the moonlight, but every part of was tuned to her presence. I knew the rhythm of her steps, the way she held her breath when she was being mischievous, the faint shift in the air when she moved closer.
I didn’t need to turn back and look at her to know she was trying to sneak up on .
Seconds later, just like I expected, her small arms slid around my waist from behind, hugging tight as she pressed herself against my bare back.
My wolf lit up instantly.
Happy. Thrilled. Practically purring.
Then... I felt sothing soft and warm pressing against my skin. She kissed my shoulder blade - soft, warm, deliberate - and I inhaled sharply before I could stop myself.
"Why are you walking around my room shirtless?" she asked, her voice innocent and amused.
I turned my head slightly, smirking. "Because I wanted your kisses."
She laughed, the sound low and sweet. "Is that so?"
And then she proved right.
"Like this?"
Her lips moved slowly across my back, trailing kisses over my shoulder, along my spine, over my biceps. Each one landed like a spark against my skin, igniting heat I was already struggling to control.
I closed my eyes for a mont, tightening my jaw, but I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face.
She hugged again, tighter this ti, her cheek pressed against my back.
"Do you want more?" she asked softly.
That did it.
I turned in her arms, pulling her with until she was pressed against my chest. My arms locked around her instinctively, protective and possessive, and I cupped the nape of her neck, my thumb brushing her skin as she tilted her head up to look at .
Her beautiful amber eyes were smiling.
"You are playing a dangerous ga," I murmured.
She tilted her head, pretending innocence far too well. "Am I?"
Before I could answer, she rose onto her tiptoes and kissed my throat... right over my pulse.
A sharp breath tore from my chest.
My hand tightened at her nape as I gently but firmly pulled her head back, forcing her to et my gaze. My voice ca out lower than I intended.
"Evaline," I warned. "I have a limit to my self-control."
She didn’t look scared. Instead, she looked certain.
"You don’t need self-control with ," she said quietly. "I want you too."
That single sentence hit harder than anything she had done so far.
But the smile that curved my lips next wasn’t a happy one. "It’s not about wanting," I said softly. "The timing isn’t right."
Her shoulders sagged imdiately.
She let out a frustrated sigh, then groaned dramatically. "I’m starting to hate the academy," she muttered. "Because of you and River."
I laughed despite myself. "That’s harsh."
"You both keep holding back," she accused. "I get it, I really do... but still."
She wasn’t wrong.
Marking her now would an an entire week... maybe even longer in River’s case... of bonding ti. She would end up missing classes, training, and her work at the council.
And as much as my wolf snarled at the delay, the last thing any of us wanted was to disrupt her life more than it already had been last sester.
I brushed my thumb along her jaw gently. "You don’t actually hate it."
She huffed. "No. But I have complaints."
I chuckled, then raised a brow. "So... what exactly is going on between you and River?"
She sighed again, clearly already tired just by re ntion of the topic. "He’s tornting ."
That caught my attention.
"How?" I asked.
"He hasn’t kissed in months," she said flatly.
I blinked. "Months?"
"When I asked him about it," she continued, "he said he’d kiss the day he marks ."
I stared at her, genuinely surprised.
"That sounded romantic at first," she admitted. "Now I just don’t know how long I’m supposed to wait."
I shook my head slowly. I knew there was tension between them, sothing going on ever since the holidays, but I hadn’t realized River was playing that kind of long ga.
"Is it just kissing?" I asked carefully... and curiously. "Or is he avoiding everything?"
Her hesitation answered before she spoke.
A flush crept up her cheeks, and she looked away.
"He mostly keeps it to hugs," she admitted. "But... there was this one incident. In his car."
Though she didn’t elaborate, I could already guess what could have happened. A knowing smile tugged at my lips. One she noticed imdiately.
"Don’t," she warned, glaring at .
I laughed softly. "I’m just saying... it sounds... fun."
She narrowed her eyes. "Now that I look at you, I’m convinced that you have picked up too many bad habits from Draven-"
The mont his na left her lips, everything froze.
Her body went still in my arms.
So did mine.
The air in the room shifted, growing heavier, quieter... as if even the ocean outside had paused to listen.
Draven.
My younger brother.
Her mate.
Still unconscious. Still trapped in that awful limbo between life and sothing worse, sleeping beneath the Thorne mansion while the world kept moving without him.
The smile vanished from my face.
Her breath hitched.
"I-" she started, then stopped.
Neither of us spoke.
There was nothing to say.
The warmth between us didn’t disappear, but it changed... it softened into sothing heavier, sothing aching and shared.
And in that silence, Draven’s absence pressed in around us like a shadow neither of us could escape.
She fell into my arms, pressing her face into my chest. "I miss him so much, Oscar."
Her voice ca out heavy as if she was holding back way too much emotions. I hugged her tightly, pressing a kiss on the top of her head.
"We will bring him back." I promised. "We will."
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