25. CHAPTER 25
SEBASTIAN
“ D o you think you should maybe call it a night?” I suggested once Hayden had taken a wasted Serfina home. Aria had just picked up the half-full bottle of wine again.
“No, no.” She attempted to point her finger at me. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.” As if to demonstrate her point, she took a swig from the bottle. “No one gets to tell me what to do anymore.”
I frowned. The fact that she was talking to me like that proved she didn’t need any more tonight. I grabbed the bottle from her and placed it on the table as she pouted.
“Sebastian Knight. You don’t get to control me.” Her tone was stern this time, her eyebrows furrowed dramatically.
I let out a silent laugh. She clearly had no idea what she was saying and didn’t understand that it wasn’t control; it was me looking out for her.
Yet, she was never one to fully listen to that when we were younger, so I didn’t know why I ever thought she’d listen to me now.
My eyes met hers, searching for an answer.
It was probably the alcohol, but they seemed to twinkle more this time.
I shifted slightly, opening my eyes. Aria was fast asleep, her head in my lap.
She looked peaceful. I flicked my wrist, looking at my watch.
It was 3 a.m. I didn’t know what time she fell asleep, but she was adamant she was finishing that last bottle of wine, and I’d decided not to argue with her about it.
I gently brushed the hair from her face with my fingers.
“Aria,” I said softly. She shifted slightly with my voice. “Aria, we need to get you to bed.”
She slowly lifted her head, and I helped her sit up.
I stood, taking her hand to steady her as she swayed onto her feet, and guided her to her bed.
We were a step away when she stumbled on the rug, grabbing my T-shirt to steady herself, but ending up pulling me with her onto the bed.
Her heart raced against my chest as she let out a soft giggle.
She brushed my loose hair out of the way so I could meet her eyes. I ran my thumb over her lips, and she trembled beneath me. I leaned into her, taking in that sweet apple scent of hers, desperate to taste her skin. My cock hardened at the feel of her curves beneath my body.
I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth, trying to regain a semblance of control as I pushed myself off her, my dick aching in protest. There was no way I was going to sleep with her whilst she was still drunk.
“Sebastian,” she whispered, her lip trembling. She held out a hand. “Can you stay with me tonight?”
I looked down at her hand and then took hold of it, squeezing it tight.
I’d stay forever, if she wanted me to.
I climbed behind her, wrapping my arm around her waist. She naturally shifted her body back, curves fitting perfectly into me. I gripped her hip, preventing her from getting any closer so she couldn’t feel how hard I was. She tried to wiggle back again.
“Aria.” I tried to control the desperation in my voice. “Stop.” I tightened my hand on her hip to make my point. It was pure torture being this close to her and not being able to touch her like I wanted to.
What felt like a lifetime of restraint ended when I could feel she was asleep.
I couldn’t take my eyes off her; she was hypnotising, beautiful—everything I wanted, and that only made me more desperate for her.
I didn’t want to wake her, so I returned to the living room and sat back on the sofa, rubbing my face, trying to erase the feelings that were exploding through my body.
I got up and made my way to the kitchen to try and distract myself by making coffee.
Thank fuck she had a coffee machine; there was no way I’d be drinking that instant shit.
I leaned my back against the counter, waiting for the machine to warm up. My mind soon drifted back to Aria—when didn’t it? Was this normal? To want someone so much to the point it was almost obsessive? I rubbed my face again, trying to wipe the thought away.
“Sebastian?” I startled. I hadn’t noticed Aria standing in the doorway, confusion on her face. “What are you doing in my kitchen?”
Before I could reply, the machine pinged, telling me it was ready. Perfect timing. “Making coffee,” I told her. “Do you want one?”
She stood there, staring at me for a few seconds, before she fully entered the room. She balanced on her tiptoes to try and grab a cup from the top cabinet.
“Do you want me to get that?” I reached up, but she swatted my hand away.
“I’m perfectly capable.” She eventually grabbed one and placed it on the counter, then turned to face me. “See?”
I took a step forward, closing the gap between us. “Perfectly capable,” I whispered, brushing her hair from her face. “I’m taking that as a yes to coffee?”
I smiled and carried on making the drinks and then handed her a cup before we returned to the sofa.
“You never told me what you were doing here?” she asked, breaking the silence.
“You were pretty drunk last night. You asked me to stay.”
Her eyes searched my face as she took a sip of her coffee, then placed it on the table.
She was about to speak but was interrupted by the post being pushed through her letterbox.
She stood and flipped through the envelopes quickly, barely glancing at them, until she paused on one. Her fingers gripped it tightly.
“Is everything ok?” I asked, standing up.
“Yeah, everything’s fine,” she replied, a little too quickly, smiling at me.
Her eyes didn’t quite meet mine, and her shoulders had stiffened. I took a step closer.
“Nyx, if something is wrong, you can tell me.”
“It’s fine,” she snapped, slapping the letters on the table, then rubbed her forehead.
Something wasn’t sitting right with me. She was hiding something.
This wasn’t Aria.
She wasn’t a liar.
I grabbed my jacket, putting it on.
“Where are you going?”
“I have business to attend to,” I lied, storming out the door.