Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
IT FEELS… BETTER THAN AMAZING.
Aldrich
“Sorinah?” Aldrich called, his voice slicing through the silence. He stroked her bare arm, marvelling once again at how impossibly soft her skin felt beneath his fingertips.
“Mmm,” she murmured, her body languid and thoroughly satiated, halfway into the embrace of slumber.
When he said her name again, something in his tone made her body stiffen beneath his touch. She raised her head, her gaze meeting his. Gone was the adoring look she had given him earlier; now, her eyes glared, irritation radiating from their depths.
“Don’t,” she hissed, shaking her head.
He would not feign ignorance. She knew—of course, she knew. That sharp mind of hers was one of the things he adored about her.
Aldrich was aware he was testing her limits tonight, but he couldn’t explain the compulsion driving him to press right up against her boundaries.
“But I want you…” His words were cut off as her finger pressed to his lips.
“I know. Isn’t that enough?” Her amber coloured eyes pleaded.
He considered her question. Shouldn’t it be enough that she knew how he felt about her? The answer surprised him. He found it had changed. “Maybe it isn’t,” he admitted.
One reason he was so drawn to her was the freedom he felt in her presence—the ability to be unfiltered, unmasked. It was an aphrodisiac he hadn’t realised he needed.
So yes, he wanted to tell the fiery woman in his arms, the one who had upended his world, exactly how he felt.
Sorinah tilted her head and let out a long sigh, its weight palpable. To his surprise, the irritation in her eyes had faded, replaced by amusement.
“I don’t know, DH. I thought your whole vibe was to show me and skip the telling part altogether.”
“You know that’s ridiculous, right? Saying it doesn’t make it any less true.”
She pressed her hand to his chest. “I know. Listen carefully, okay?” Her smile faltered, and she nibbled her lower lip.
“Okay,” he replied, apprehension creeping into his voice.
“I just can’t handle it right now. Can you please give me a break on this?”
Aldrich couldn’t help insisting. “How about you meet me halfway?”
“How do you propose I do that?” She quirked an eyebrow.
“Just acknowledge that you know how I feel about you.”
She narrowed her eyes, and the silence stretched between them. Just as he was about to lose hope, she gave him what he was asking for, her voice soft.
“Aldrich, I know how you feel about me.”
Although he had asked for the small admission, he hadn’t imagined how exhilarating it would feel to hear it.
Sorinah cleared her throat. “And…”
Was that it? he wondered.
“It feels… better than amazing.”
Well, fuck. That he hadn’t expected.
She traced her fingertip along his pec, her touch light yet intense.
“And… I feel the same about you.”
“I see.” Fuck, it felt like his heart might burst out of his chest. He knew how she felt about him, but in this moment, she had given so much more than he’d asked for.
He pressed a kiss to her temple as she rested her head on his chest, as though the admission had drained her.
“Don’t say anything smart-assed,” she mumbled.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” And he meant it.
Aldrich understood the woman in his arms. They had come a long way in the last few months. It hadn’t been easy for her to lower her guard, especially where Mars was concerned.
They had shared dinners a few times, some at Sorinah’s place. She hadn’t allowed Aldrich to spend the night, a hard limit he respected.
His reward was her gradual openness. Her interactions with him deepened alongside his growing closeness with Mars.