Chapter 6 #2
The night had settled like silk across the sky, stars scattered above them in quiet glitter. The pool lights glowed a soft blue beneath the surface, casting ripples of light across the tile as Rio uncorked a dark bottle of red wine and poured it into two oversized glasses.
Kylee had dried off, her hair still damp and loose around her shoulders. She wore a thin, black robe he’d left out for her, probably expensive, definitely too sheer and the way it clung to her skin made her feel both bold and wildly exposed.
They sat side by side on the cushioned lounger near the water, their knees touching as they sipped wine in slow, warm pulls.
“I’m glad you came,” Rio said, watching her over the rim of his glass.
Kylee smiled faintly, swirling her wine. “You’re lucky Kelly talks a lot of shit and I needed a break.”
He chuckled, his eyes crinkling. “That’s the story you’re going with?”
She gave him a playful look, then fell quiet. The stillness between them stretched, thicker than before. The air had shifted softer, slower. Rio set his glass down and turned toward her, resting his arm along the back of the lounger, his fingers brushing the ends of her hair.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about you,” he said lowly.
Her breath caught. The sincerity in his voice undid something in her chest.
“I shouldn’t be here,” she whispered again.
“But you are,” he said. “And I’m not sorry.”
He leaned in slowly. Deliberately. Giving her time to stop him.
Their lips grazed. Softly. Barely. Enough to make her stomach tighten and her breath hitch. But just as he was about to deepen it, Kylee pulled back gently, but firmly her fingers curling into the robe at her chest.
“I can’t,” she said, her voice barely audible. “Not yet.”
Rio didn’t flinch. He didn’t pressure. He just nodded, eyes steady on hers. “I’ll wait. I just had to taste the moment.”
Kylee laughed quietly, shakily. “You make it very hard to think straight.”
“That’s the idea,” he said with a smirk. “But I’ll behave… for now.”
She picked up her wine again, needing the weight in her hand, the distraction on her tongue. But even as they returned to casual conversation, laughing softly beneath the stars, the taste of his mouth lingered just close enough to haunt her.
Later, Kylee stood alone in the guest room Rio had led her to. It was beautiful, too beautiful white linen sheets, a balcony overlooking the hills, soft music playing faintly through hidden speakers. The robe clung to her skin, and the cool air prickled her already-heated body.
She didn’t kiss him. But it had been close enough to make every nerve in her body pulse with want.She paced the room slowly, glass of wine still in hand, half-drunk and completely distracted.
The silence around her didn’t help, too quiet, too aware.
Her thoughts wouldn't settle. Every flash of Rio's eyes, the touch of his fingers on her hair, the sound of his low laugh all of it looped in her head like a song she couldn’t turn off.
Her phone buzzed on the dresser.
Rio: I can’t sleep.
She stared at the message. Three words. That’s all it took.
She didn't reply. She just placed the wine glass down, padded to the door, and opened it quietly.
The house was hushed. She could hear the sound of the pool filter outside, a faint hum.
The walls seemed to breathe around her as she tiptoed barefoot down the long hall.Rio's bedroom door was slightly open.
She hesitated.
He was there standing just on the other side, leaning against the frame, shirtless in a pair of low black joggers, hair damp like he’d just showered.
“You always walk around mansions in the middle of the night?” he asked, voice low and rough with sleep or maybe something else.
“I couldn’t sleep either,” she whispered.
They stood in silence for a beat too long.Then he stepped aside, motioning her in with a simple, quiet gesture.
Kylee’s heart thundered in her chest as she crossed the threshold. She wasn’t sure what this meant, not really. But her body had already made the decision her mind was still trying to resist.
“I don’t expect anything,” Rio said, softly. “You can just sit with me. I just… wanted to see you again tonight. That’s all.”
She nodded, wordless, and moved toward the large bed. He followed.
They didn’t touch at first. Just laid there side by side on top of the covers, staring up at the ceiling. Breathing together. Then his hand found hers. Fingers laced. She didn’t pull away.
After a moment, Kylee turned her head toward him and whispered, “This is so wrong.”
“But it doesn’t feel wrong,” he replied.
She closed her eyes, her breath shaky.
“I’m trying so hard not to fall.”
“Then don’t fall,” he said. “Just be here. With me. Right now.”
And somehow, just hearing that be here broke something inside her. The resistance gave way to wanting, not lust exactly, but longing. She rolled toward him slowly, chest to chest, his breath warm against her cheek.
Rio didn’t rush. He just looked at her like she was something rare and breakable, and then placed the softest kiss on her forehead.
“I’m still waiting,” he whispered. “But I won’t sleep knowing you’re just down the hall.”
She let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding.
“Then don’t let me go,” she murmured.
He didn’t.
The lamp cast a soft amber glow over the room. Shadows shifted on the walls as the breeze from the open balcony door whispered through sheer curtains. Kylee stayed curled against Rio, her head on his chest, listening to the slow, steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her cheek.
His arm rested around her bare shoulders. Not possessive just there, comforting. Like he’d always meant for it to be. He was warm, and his skin smelled like fresh soap and something darker underneath. Something him.
They hadn’t said much in a while. There was no need. The silence between them felt full, not awkward. Charged. Every now and then, she’d lift her eyes and find him already watching her.
“You’re doing it again,” she whispered, her voice like velvet.
“Doing what?” His voice was just above a murmur.
“Looking at me like I’m yours.”
Rio didn’t smile. He didn’t flinch. He simply said, “That’s because I want you to be.”
Kylee’s breath caught. She didn’t have the strength or the will to argue with that.
He reached up and gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered along her jaw, then traced her bottom lip with the pad of his thumb. It was barely a touch, but it made her whole body light up.
“You keep letting me hold you,” he said.
“I know.”
“You keep coming back to me.”
“I know,” she whispered again.
He shifted, slowly rolling onto his side to face her fully. She stayed right there with him, lips parted, eyes wide.
Rio’s hand moved down, brushing her waist, slipping beneath the edge of the robe she hadn’t bothered tying fully. His touch wasn’t rushed. It was reverent. Like she was something he’d been imagining for too long and now that she was here, he didn’t want to take a single second for granted.
Her breath hitched as his palm found the bare skin of her hip.
“Tell me to stop,” he said, barely audible.
She didn’t.
Instead, her hand moved up his chest, fingers splaying out across his skin, feeling the way his body tensed underneath her touch.
He leaned in closer, so close and brushed his lips along her collarbone. Feather light. Teasing. Almost not enough to call a kiss.
Kylee tilted her head, her lips dangerously close to his. Their noses touched. She could feel his breath on her mouth.
“I’m scared,” she whispered.
“I’m not,” he said. “I’ve never been sure of anything in my life.”
She stared at him, heart thudding like a drum. Just as their lips grazed she pulled back. Barely. But enough.
Rio didn’t chase her. He let her hover there, caught between the cliff’s edge and the fall.
“I should go to my room,” she said, breathless.
He gave her a long look hungry, knowing but nodded. “If that’s what you need.”
Kylee slowly sat up, the robe falling a little too open, and he didn’t look away. She fixed it gently and swung her legs off the bed. As she walked toward the door, she heard him call softly after her.
“I’ll be here when you stop running.”
She paused. Didn’t turn around.
Then she slipped back down the hallway, heart racing, lips tingling, and Rio’s warmth still burning on her skin. She didn’t stop thinking about what it would feel like if she hadn’t pulled away.
Kylee went to the guest room and closed the door to her room behind her, leaning her back against it. Her chest rose and fell with shallow breaths. The robe clung to her damp skin in places where Rio's touch still lingered like smoke.
She hadn’t meant for it to get that far.
She hadn’t meant to want more. But she did.
Every inch of her body was awake, alive, aching in a way she hadn’t felt in years.
She walked slowly into the opulent bathroom, flipping on the dim, golden lighting.
Everything shimmered marble countertops, glass walls, and sleek black hardware.
It felt like something out of a magazine.
She let the robe fall to the floor and stepped into the oversized rainfall shower.
The moment the warm water hit her, she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.
Kylee pressed her palms to the wall, trying to center herself, to shake Rio from her mind.
She stayed there for a while, letting the water pour over her shoulders, soaking into her hair, trailing down her bare back.
But the longer she stood there, the more the heat brought him back to her mind, his breath on her skin, the whisper of his fingers tracing her lips.Her thighs clenched. Her heart wouldn’t settle.