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Chapter 0123
Chapter 0123
Cara’s POV
I freeze, not sure I heard him right.
No, I must have misunderstood him. Either that, or… Or he’s just messing with me. A cruel joke. Yes, that must be what this is, I think to myself.
“…Ha–ha, very funny,” I deadpan to Alaric, who is still standing outside my door. “You’ve had your fun.”
“I’m not joking, Cara. I do miss you…more than even I realized…” his voice trails off just in time for the loud BOOM of thunder to echo against the house, making me jump in surprise.
Alaric must have been caught off guard, too, because he drops the bouquet of flowers he was holding.
Rain starts falling quickly, great buckets of water pouring down, drenching Alaric and everything around him in the blink of an eye. A gust of wind blows hard, shaking the open door behind me on its hinges.
Petals separate from the bouquet’s flowers, blowing around us in the violent winds. I think, fleetingly, what a shame that is to have ruined such a beautiful arrangement of flowers.
Another ominously loud clap of thunder rings out, making me jump again once more.
“Hurry, get inside!” I yell to Alaric, running into the house before I realize that I’ve just invited him inside, something I had absolutely NOT planned on doing. I’m only focused on getting myself out of the weather, on preventing my comfortable clothes from getting wet.
Alaric follows closely behind me. I close the door after him and turn around, leaning my back against the solid wood. Another strong gust of wind causes it to buck underneath my weight.
It’s only when I look up at Alaric that I realize what I’ve done.
I’ve invited the big, bad wolf right into my home.
Alaric’s shirt and pants are soaked. The fabric looks dark, pulling tightly against every ridge and ripple of his body in its damp state. Puddles form on the floor below him as his clothes drip.
I’m staring at the pooled water, desperately avoiding looking at this display of his impressive muscles when I hear myself say, “I’m sorry, but I don’t have any men’s clothes
you to change into…”
for
I risk looking up at him to see one of Alaric’s black eyebrows raise, then furrow. He looks
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Chapter 0123
confused, very confused indeed.
“But… Wait, where is your husband?” Alaric asks, a bit of an edge in his voice. He’s glancing around the cottage, eyes darting around to anywhere in view.
I feel the fuzziness in my head from the wine. Standing here with Alaric, I realize I’ve drank more than I normally would. It has me feeling unusually bold, courageous even,
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“I don’t have a husband,” I declare, letting a hint of my irritation show through. I turn off the music I’d been listening to before I was rudely interrupted by Alaric.
What right does he have to come here, into my home, and ask demanding questions about my husband?
He stares at me silently for a moment before saying, “Okay… so you’re divorced then? That’s why he’s never with you?”
I almost want to laugh.
I don’t bother responding. I simply ignore his questions, moving away from him. I point down the hall and call over my shoulder to him, “There’s a guest bathroom just there. Feel free to use it to clean up.”
“And where will you be?” Alaric asks, not moving from where he stands.
AL
I wave a hand at him, trying to encourage him to make his way to the bathroom. When he still doesn’t move, I plop myself down on the couch in the middle of the living room, saying, “I need to rest a bit. I’ve had some wine, and I really wanted to watch this movie, so please don’t disturb me.”
I pull myself into a hug, gripping the chunky sweater that’s enveloping me. I turn the volume on the TV up louder, emphasizing my point to Alaric.
Alaric clearly doesn’t heed my request. He steps directly in between where I sit on the couch and the TV, blocking my view with his large muscular frame. His clothes are still dripping wet.
And still pulling tightly across the muscles of his chest… across the muscles of his abs… and his biceps….
So much for watching my movie in peace.
“You don’t have a husband then?” he asks again roughly, staring down at me with heat.
.“I don’t answer him.
The air in the house grows quiet, with only the sound of actors laughing on the TV and the rain falling outside.
I can’t answer him. I don’t want to speak to this man anymore.
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Chapter 0123
Then Alaric adds in a quieter voice, almost pleading, “Please, Cara. I need you to tell me.”
The alcohol reduces my patience, and I feel an even greater sense of irritation well up inside me. I feel something inside me snap, and I look up at Alaric with what I’m sure are daggers in my green eyes..
“…Please.”
He repeats.
Another silent.
“…Yes! I don’t have a husband!”
I curl up, tucking my feet up under me on the couch. “And what does that have to do with you anyway? We’ve already rejected each other we’ve already broken up!
“”
The silence rages, deafening between us, there’s only the sounds of the movie still playing behind us.
We stare at each other, gazes hot. It’s like I can actually see the tension between us, radiating, almost sparkling in the air that separates us.
I think Alaric will mock me for my answer, but when I look at his face, I realize he’s… surprised?
I can’t describe the emotion on his face. It’s a mix of something complicated–bitterness, joy, regret, and apology… But how could Alaric feel regret about me? Why makes him so happy?
The more the moments tick by, the harder it is for me to breathe. It’s overwhelming, this emotional energy being shared. This… unease.
I don’t know what he wants from me, I don’t know he even came here tonight. He’s done nothing but tell me time and time again how he doesn’t love me.
Just hurt me, again and again… He doesn’t care about me at all.
Today must be a new way for him to tease me.
But Alaric keeps staring at me, his handsome face so close to mine. We’re almost breathing the same air.
I’turn on my heel towards the door when I feel the electricity of Alaric’s hand grabbing my own. He pulls me, spinning me around, and I wobble on my feet, still a bit hazy from the wine.
Alaric’s strong hand grips my waist, steading me. I feel the smallest touch of his fingertip
side. rise above the waistband of my leggings, touching the bare skin of my
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It feels scorching. Like he’s invisibly, magically branding me with his fingers.
I open my mouth to gasp, to let out the breath that I didn’t realize I’d be holding from our stare down. But I can’t make a sound.
Because before I know it, Alaric’s lips are crashing down onto my own.
A deep kiss.
“…Cara!” In the brief moment between breaths, he softly murmurs in my ear.
….He’s kissing me.
