18. Raiden

18

RAIDEN

I don't think Adrianna ever looks as beautiful as she does when she's left speechless. I love her fire and sass, but watching her jaw fall slack as her lashes flutter with every blink does something to me. Her cheeks turn the palest shade of pink as her pupils dilate, searching my stare for answers I'm more than willing to give her if only she would ask the damn questions.

My heart races as the silence stretches between us, despite my appreciation for her in this state. I shouldn't have said that. Just because I'd decided to come to terms with it myself doesn't mean she was ready to hear it.

I can handle this silence, though. It's the deadly silent treatment she delivers that's driving me insane. There's no way in Hell I can handle another moment more of it. Especially not after today. There are no words that can describe the heart-lurching feeling that rippled through my body at the sight of her falling through the ice.

She took a piece of me with her.

That's why I dove right in after her, giving Cassian, Brody, and Kryll no chance to consider their options. It had to be me. I had to save her. After I led the damn council to her, I knew deep in my bones that I had to be the one to do it, with the weight of impending guilt if I didn't. But that's not the case. She's here. Right here, and I'm done wasting time letting her be mad at me. Well, she can stay mad, but I'm done staying away.

"Raiden, I?—"

I wave her off, not wanting whatever bullshit is about to fall from her sweet fucking lips. "All I need to know from you right now is whether you can forgive me or not." She blinks at me, mouth moving with no words coming out. "I told you I'll figure out how to grovel, but just tell me that you can." It's a plea, one that would have had me rolling on the floor in a mixture of embarrassment and disgust before, but for her, it's worth it. I know it.

She leans back in her seat, her gaze assessing as she searches my eyes. "How did the roses end up back in my room?"

My eyebrows rise. That's not where I was expecting her to start.

Scrubbing the back of my neck, I know I just have to be straight with her. "Wow, you're going straight to it, huh?" I murmur, earning a pointed look from her. "While you weren't there, I snuck in and hid the roses in the back of your closet and replaced the ones on your desk with standard roses. No blood involved."

Frown lines form on her forehead as her lip pulls into a thin line. "So I threw normal roses?"

She's mad.

Clearing my throat, I quickly adjust in my seat to brace my elbows on the table between us. "The shattering could have been heard from here, so if it makes you feel any better, I gathered them, and they're in my room."

Her body relaxes, the relief for the roses prominent, before she frowns back at me again.

"So you've still had access to my room this whole time?"

I should feel guilty, but I don't. I predicted her moves and kept myself one step ahead. That's who I am. That won't change, especially when it comes to her.

"I snuck back in to move the roses, but that's it," I offer, but the mention of sneaking in again definitely doesn't work in my favor.

"That's it? You're not supposed to sneak in anywhere , Raiden," she hisses, and I shake my head at her.

"Do you know how tempting it is to know I could sneak in and watch you sleep? To consider lying beside you?" I ask, watching as she gapes at me. She doesn't offer a response, but that doesn't mean I'm done. "Well, it's tempting, very tempting, I might add, but I haven't, so that should count for something." I lean back, folding my arms over my chest as I wait for her response.

"My steaks better not be getting cold over here," Pearl interrupts, giving us both a pointed look before she saunters off. We wordlessly dig into the steaks on our plates before she comes back to tell us off again.

A silence descends over us, but this time it feels comforting, like there's hope that everything just might be okay. Once we're done, I leave some money on the table for Pearl. I always over-tip, and she always tells me off, but this time, I manage to slip out before there's a chance. She's too busy murmuring something to Adrianna to pay me any mind.

I use the moment of calmness to come up with a game plan with Adrianna, but the moment the thoughts start running through my head, I know I'm approaching it wrong. I need her to forgive me, but every path to that goal that I come up with is only me forcing her into something that will make her hate me more.

Pearl's words from the other day ring in my mind and my spine stiffens.

" She needs to see your vulnerable side, Raiden."

"I don't have one."

Or do I?

I wasn't raised to have one; that's the issue. Pearl is a human, wearing her emotions on her sleeve like so many others do, but that's not something that's passed through the vampire line.

The door swings open, the usual chime ringing through the night air, and I turn to see Adrianna lift her black hood over her head.

"What now?" she asks, turning to me awkwardly.

"That's up to you," I breathe, silently pleading for her not to take off without a backward glance.

To my surprise, she nods and takes off down the narrow cobbled road. I keep in step with her, relieved that she's still here, even if it is in silence, but to my surprise, she cocks a brow at me a moment later. "Is this what you usually wear to visit Pearl's?"

She's far too observant for her own good.

"No, this is what I wear to visit my father," I admit, the moon offering enough light for me to see her eyebrows lift at my honesty. "He didn't know about my mother's involvement in the whole fated mates situation, but he didn't seem upset by it either," I add, offering her full transparency even though she didn't specifically ask for it.

"How does that make you feel?" she asks, catching me off guard.

My brows bunch together, uncertainty clawing up my spine as my pulse throbs. My fingers itch to massage my temples, but I tuck them into my pant pockets instead. "Honestly? Like a pawn in someone else's game."

"I know that feeling," she replies, her words barely more than a whisper, but the truth in them hits me square in the gut.

"Enough about me. Well, in this sense, at least. How about you tell me how I can get the groveling in full swing," I offer, praying for her to go along with the change in subject.

Curious eyes sparkle as she stares up at me.

"What does groveling look like to you, Raiden?"

Damn.

"I don't know, but it definitely starts with me on my knees," I muse, raking my eyes over the length of her. She may be hidden behind her black cloak, but I know those hot curves that are concealed right now.

"Your knees?" she breathes, and I'm moving before I can think.

Reaching for her waist, I tug her toward me, circling around the stone wall into a shadowed alcove obscured from view. Plastering her back against the wall, I hear the sharp intake of breath that renders her speechless as I drop to my knees before her.

"Raiden…" I don't know whether it's a warning, a plea, or a promise, but it goes straight to my cock.

"Fuck, I never thought you'd say my name again," I admit, running my fingers over her thighs. The telltale trace of a sharp object beneath her joggers confirms this crazy-ass woman has daggers pinned to her flesh.

Hot. As. Fuck.

"What are you doing?" she asks, her hands falling to my shoulders as I inch higher, curling my fingers beneath her waistband.

"Groveling."

"How?" she squeaks, making me grin as I pull down her pants to reveal the silver at her thighs glistening in the darkness. Focusing my stare on the lace that covers her pussy, I grin.

"With my tongue. Possibly my fingers too, but definitely not my cock because this is all about you," I ramble, unable to cut the words off as I lean closer.

"An orgasm isn't going to make everything better," she murmurs, and I look up at her through hooded eyes, a grin on my lips.

"I know, but it will help," I state before snapping my teeth on the lace blocking me from my target. It snags easily, tearing at her hip as I use a little of my advanced speed. I watch with satisfaction as the material scatters, lost to the soft breeze in the air as I feast my eyes on her center.

Her fingers curl into my shoulders with anticipation, not pushing me away like I half expect, and I dive in.

Running my tongue from her center to her clit, a soft moan escapes from her mouth as her head falls back.

"That's it, Adrianna. Tell me how much you want this," I breathe, repeating the motion, but this time I rake my teeth over her sensitive nub.

"Fuck, Raiden," she rasps, so I do it again. And again and again.

Desperate to feel her clench around me in any way I can, I line up two fingers at her core, diving inside as I swirl my tongue around her clit, and she writhes against the stone behind her. Her walls pulse around me as I curl my fingers inside her.

Fuck.

Nothing has ever tasted as sweet as her.

She's addicting, intoxicating, and everything I vowed never to want.

But now I can't breathe without her.

Eager to taste her release, I double down my efforts, pressing the tips of my fingers against her g-spot as she grinds against me. With a final nip of her clit, she cries out, her fingers moving to my hair as she tugs at the ends.

I lap at her core, not wanting to waste a drop of her ecstasy as she sags, spent, against the wall.

"Fuck, Raiden," she repeats, her fingers leisurely stroking through the strands of my hair, and I smile, just as satisfied, despite my cock pressing against the waistband of my pants.

Standing, I fix her joggers into place and peer down at her, but she barely moves. She's exhausted. She's had one hell of a day, so I'm not surprised.

"I'm going to move us, Adrianna," I murmur, tugging her against me, and she sags in my hold, surprising me when she doesn't argue.

Clinging to her, I move us as quickly as possible, and a beat later, we're in her room. Fairy lights hang at the window and a smattering of yellow cushions litter her bed. Something tells me this has something to do with Flora, but it suits her still.

Even when I kick the door shut behind me, she keeps her face nestled against my chest, making my body warm at our connection. Shuffling closer to her bed, I tug the cover back before gently lifting her in the air and placing her on the sheets. When I unclip her cloak, she rolls over, allowing me to tug the material away. I place it over the chair at her desk and turn back to her.

"Goodnight, Adrianna," I whisper, fighting the desire to stay as I move toward the door. But as my fingers curl around the handle, I hear one single word.

"Stay."

"Stay?"

"Such a parrot," she grumbles, making me scoff as my heart gallops in my chest.

"You're one to talk," I retort, earning a snicker as she peers over her shoulder at me. Her eyes are barely open as sleep threatens to take over.

"Are you staying or not?"

She doesn't need to ask me again.

Undressing as quickly as I can, I slip beneath her sheets in just my boxers, and she nestles back against me.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

This is something so small, so simple, yet so fucking euphoric it leaves me breathless.

I know I'm not through the woods with her yet, but fuck, there's a chance, and that's all that matters.