31. Chapter Thirty-One #3
I keep talking, tracing the air above the glass with my finger as I explain the molecular structure and how temperature affects the volatility of the scent trail.
My cheeks feel warm with how much I love this, how alive it makes me feel to share it.
I turn to see if Adrian is following along and realize he has gone very still beside me.
He stands only a step away, eyes fixed on my face instead of the moths. The longing in his gaze is so open and unguarded that it steals the rest of my sentence. His green eyes have gone dark behind his glasses, and the dim museum light catches on the faint flush across his cheekbones.
For a moment the entire world narrows to just us in this quiet gallery.
Adrian steps closer. The air between us feels charged, electric. He lifts both hands slowly and cups my face with such gentleness that my breath catches. His palms are hot against my skin, thumbs brushing lightly over my cheekbones. Then he leans in and kisses me.
The kiss starts thoughtful and deep, full of everything we have been holding back all day.
His mouth moves against mine with tender care, but I feel the restrained hunger underneath it in the way his fingers tremble slightly against my jaw.
I fist my hands in the front of his navy cardigan and pull him closer, matching the kiss with the same intensity.
It’s romantic and sweet, yet edged with real want that makes my pulse race.
The undercurrent of need is there, but there’s no rush, no escalation. Just this perfect, aching connection that feels like it could go on forever and still not be enough.
When we finally pull apart, both of us breathing harder, Adrian rests his forehead against mine. His eyes stay closed for a long second, like he’s savoring the moment.
Then he whispers, voice rough with emotion, “I couldn’t hold back anymore. Seeing you like this, completely in your element, you are so beautiful it hurts.”
I keep my hands curled in his cardigan, heart pounding against my ribs.
The gallery around us feels even quieter now, the soft lighting wrapping us in our own private world.
Adrian’s rain on stone and bergamot scent fills every breath I take, and I realize in this moment how deeply I am falling for the quiet, brilliant alpha who looks at me like my passion for bugs is the most precious thing in the world.
We stay in the gallery a little longer, the air between us still humming with the kiss we just shared. Adrian keeps one hand on the small of my back as we wander past the remaining cases, his touch tender now, more lingering.
Every time our eyes meet he smiles at me like we’re carrying a secret no one else in the museum knows. I feel the same smile on my own face, impossible to resist.
We drift into the gift shop on our way out.
The shelves are full of tiny treasures, and Adrian pauses in front of a display of delicate glass ornaments shaped like insects.
He picks up a small luna moth pendant, the wings etched in pale green glass that catches the light exactly like the real specimens we just saw.
He turns it over in his hands, then glances at me with that shy, hopeful look.
“For you,” he says simply. “To remember today.”
I let him buy it for me. When the cashier hands it over in a little velvet pouch, Adrian slips it into my palm and closes my fingers around it. The gesture feels so tender it makes my chest ache in the best way.
The drive back to campus passes in the sweetest kind of silence at first. The fall scenery rolls by in blurs of gold and crimson, and I keep stealing glances at Adrian’s profile while he drives. After a while he reaches over and rests his hand on mine where it lies on my thigh.
“I love how passionate you are,” he says, thumb brushing circles against my skin. “The way your whole face lights up when you talk about compound eyes or pheromone trails. I never want you to dim that part of yourself. Not for anyone.”
His words settle deep inside me, absolute. I turn my hand over so our fingers can lace together.
“This date has made me feel truly seen for the first time,” I admit. “Not just as an omega or as someone in a pack. But as me. The girl who gets excited about stag beetles and luna moths. You really listened, Adrian. You asked questions like you actually wanted to know the answers.”
He squeezes my hand gently. “I always will.”
We pull up outside my dorm building as the early evening light turns everything golden. Adrian parks and walks me to the door, his hand never leaving mine.
When we stop on the path he cups my face again, the same gentle way he did in the museum, and presses a lingering kiss to my forehead. His lips stay there for a long moment, decadent and full of promise.
“I’m already counting down until our next time alone,” he whispers against my skin.
I watch him walk back to his car, heart full and fluttering. Then I step inside the dorm and close the door behind me. My fingers drift up to touch my lips without thinking, replaying the tender, deep kiss we shared in the gallery. The memory sends a fresh wave of heat through me.
I am starting to fall for him. Deeply. For the brilliant alpha who understands my love of bugs so completely, who looks at me like my passion is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen.