Youre Dangerous Like This
The room felt too small after that.
Too warm.
Too intimate.
Lia stood frozen in the middle of Adrian's bedroom wearing his shirt while he looked at her like restraint was physically painful.
And maybe the most terrifying part?
She could feel how close he was to losing it completely.
Not violently.
Not recklessly.
Worse.
Quietly.
Like every careful piece of control he'd built around himself was slowly cracking because of her.
Adrian's hand still hovered near her waist.
Not touching.
Trying not to.
The effort alone made something tighten painfully inside her chest.
"You're staring again," she whispered softly.
Adrian's eyes lifted slowly back to hers.
"I'm trying not to touch you."
The honesty wrapped tightly around her spine.
Because he sounded exhausted by it.
Lia swallowed carefully.
"You say things like that so casually."
"No," Adrian murmured quietly.
His jaw tightened slightly.
"I think about them constantly."
Heat rushed immediately through her body.
God.
Everything felt too intense with him now.
The storm outside echoed softly against the glass walls while silence stretched between them.
Heavy.
Alive somehow.
Adrian finally let his hand settle against her waist.
Warm fingers spreading carefully against the oversized shirt she wore.
His shirt.
The realization affected him immediately too.
A sharp breath left him softly.
"You shouldn't wear my clothes if you want me behaving normally."
Lia looked up at him carefully.
"You stopped behaving normally weeks ago."
A faint flicker crossed his face.
Not amusement.
Something darker.
Possessive.
"Yes."
No denial.
Never denial.
His thumb moved lightly against her waist.
Tiny movement.
Enough to make her pulse turn uneven immediately.
"You're shaking."
"You make me nervous."
"No," Adrian said softly.
"You like being wanted by me."
The truth of that settled painfully deep inside her chest.
Because she did.
Maybe not rationally.
Maybe not healthily.
But Adrian wanted her in a way no one ever had before.
Completely.
Obsessively.
Like losing her would ruin him.
And maybe some broken part of her loved that too much.
Adrian stepped closer slowly.
Close enough now that warmth surrounded her entirely.
His gaze moved carefully across her face.
Focused.
Studying.
Like he still couldn't fully believe she was standing here in his bedroom willingly.
"You stayed."
The quietness of it hurt unexpectedly.
Because Adrian sounded almost surprised by her choosing him.
Lia's voice softened instinctively.
"You asked me to."
"I would've asked forever."
The confession shattered straight through her remaining composure.
Because Adrian didn't sound teasing.
He sounded serious enough to mean every word.
Her heartbeat hammered violently.
"You can't say things like that before bed."
"Why?"
"Because people need emotional stability to sleep."
For the first time all night, Adrian laughed softly.
Low.
Warm.
Real enough to make her chest ache.
The sound faded quickly though.
And the second silence returned—
his eyes darkened again.
Lia recognized that look now.
The dangerous one.
The one that appeared whenever Adrian stopped pretending he wasn't affected.
His fingers tightened slightly against her waist.
"You know what the problem is?"
Her throat felt dry.
"What?"
"You trust me too much already."
The words settled heavily between them.
Because maybe—
maybe he was right.
Lia should've been more afraid.
Instead she stood inches away from a man dangerously obsessed with her while wearing his clothes in his bedroom.
And somehow—
she felt safe.
Adrian noticed the realization crossing her face.
Of course he did.
Something vulnerable flickered behind his expression for half a second.
Then disappeared beneath darker emotion.
"You look at me like you don't understand how dangerous I could become for you."
Lia frowned softly.
"You've never hurt me."
"That isn't what I said."
The quietness in his voice sent chills down her spine immediately.
Because suddenly—
she understood something terrifying.
Adrian wasn't warning her about violence.
He was warning her about attachment.
Dependency.
The way he could consume every part of her life if she let him.
And maybe the worst part?
She already was letting him.
The silence stretched too long.
Then Adrian's hand slid slowly upward against her back.
Careful.
Possessive.
Pulling her slightly closer against him.
Close enough now that she could feel the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.
"You smell like me."
Heat rushed instantly into her face.
"That sentence should not affect someone this much."
"But it does."
God.
His honesty would actually destroy her someday.
Adrian lowered his head slightly.
Forehead brushing softly against hers.
The intimacy of the gesture nearly hurt.
Because this wasn't lust anymore.
Not entirely.
This was something softer.
Deeper.
Worse.
His voice dropped lower.
"You're dangerous like this."
Lia's pulse stumbled.
"Like what?"
"Quiet." His fingers tightened slightly against her waist. "Wearing my clothes. Looking at me like you want affection."
Her breath caught softly.
Because he noticed everything.
Every tiny shift in her expression.
Every need she tried hiding.
Adrian's eyes lowered briefly toward her mouth.
Then back up again.
Control cracking visibly now.
"You have no idea how hard it is not to kiss you again."
The confession wrapped tightly around her chest.
Lia's fingers curled lightly against the fabric of his shirt before she could stop herself.
The reaction hit Adrian immediately.
A sharp inhale left him.
His eyes darkened completely.
"There," he whispered roughly.
"That."
Her heartbeat turned chaotic.
"What?"
"You touch me back without thinking now."
The truth of it nearly ruined her emotionally.
Because once again—
he was right.
Adrian stared at her for several long seconds afterward.
Like he was trying to memorize this version of her.
Soft.
Sleepy.
Wearing his clothes.
Standing willingly in his arms.
Then quietly—
so quietly it almost sounded like confession—
he murmured:
"You're becoming mine in ways you still haven't realized yet."
And maybe the scariest part?
Lia wasn't sure she wanted to stop it anymore.