Chapter 107
Chapter 107
Mia stood still, her heart thudding as her eyes flicked from Alex’s clenched jaw to the stiff awkward posture of Ethan just a few steps away.
The air between them was thick-too thick-like one wrong word or movement could shatter everything.
Alex wasn’t even blinking.
His gaze was locked on Ethan like he was seeing straight through him. His fingers twitched at his sides, tense, like he was fighting the urge to do something-say something..
Ethan looked like he was about to pee on himself where he stood.
He wasn’t saying anything either. Just standing there, mouth slightly open, face pale.
Mia exhaled softly.
She stepped closer to him-so close that her chest brushed his arm-and reached up gently, cupping his face in her hands.
His skin was warm. Tense under her palms.
“Hey…” she said, her voice soft but firm. “Look at me.”
Alex didn’t move at first.
Then his gaze slowly dropped from Ethan’s direction to hers, like it physically pained him to pull his attention away. But he did.
Mia gave him a small smile. Not forced. Not fake. Just soft.
Like, I’m here.
She smiles, her thumbs gently brushing his cheekbones. “Let’s go.”
Alex’s eyes searched hers for a moment longer.
Then, finally, he nodded.
Without another word, Mia slipped her fingers down to his hand and laced their fingers together. She turned, tugging him gently back toward the car. Alex followed.
He didn’t look back.
But Mia did.
Just for a second, her eyes met Ethan’s.
All she gave him was a steady, unreadable look before she opened the passenger door and got in.
Alex slid into the driver’s side, still quiet. He reached for her hand again the moment he was settled in his seat. His grip wasn’t tight, just secure….
Mia held onto him without hesitation, thumb rubbing the side of his palm.
Chapter IVI
Alex looked over at her, and for the first time since they’d seen Ethan, he smiled. Not wide. Not smug. But real.
That one small smile was enough to make her shoulders finally relax.
She hadn’t realized how tense she’d been until now. A part of her had been scared-not of Alex hurting her, but of what this moment could’ve become.
Maybe it will click that Ethan is really her brother?
Maybe shut down. Hate her?
But he didn’t.
He was still here.
With her.
She squeezed his hand once more as he turned the key in the ignition.
They drove in silence, but it wasn’t the heavy kind. It was the kind that felt full-like something unspoken was gently taking root between them.
Alex killed the engine and got out of the car, then came around to her side. Without saying a word, he opened her door and scooped her up like she weighed nothing. Mia let out a tiny gasp as he lifted her onto the hood of his car, her legs dangling over the edge. She didn’t have time to react before Alex stepped between her legs, closing the space between them like it belonged to him.
Mia’s eyes found his, soft and searching.
Alex didn’t speak
–
not yet
—
just stared at her like he needed to memorize this exact version of her: wind playing with her hair, her lips slightly parted, the sun kissing the side of her face.
“I just- I don’t know, the sight of him triggers me sometimes, sometimes I barely notice his existence even if we are in the same room together. Alex says calmly
“I’m
sorry…” she finally said, voice almost a whisper. “For his involvement
Her words were slow, careful, like she was afraid of making things worse.
Alex’s expression didn’t change right away. He kept looking at her sad.
–
”
not angry, not cold, just… present. And maybe a little
“Thank you,” he said quietly, his voice steady. He glanced away, like something in the distance caught his attention. But then he looked right back at her. “It’s not exactly just your brother’s fault. Jullian played a huge part in all of it too”
He let out a soft sigh and rubbed his hands up and down her thighs, his palms grounding her like they were made for it.
She forgets about everything they were talking about.
That simple touch made Mia’s skin erupt in goosebumps. She didn’t realize she’d been holding her breath until she felt herself exhale slowly through her nose.
She leaned in a little.
2/3
Then a little more.
And before she could talk herself out of it – before she could second-guess whether she was allowed to feel like this right Now she bent forward and kissed him.
–
It wasn’t hurried. It wasn’t wild.
It was soft. Slow. Her lips brushed his like a question, and the moment he answered the moment he leaned into her – it felt like the whole world stilled.
She pulled back just an inch, smiling against his mouth.
Alex chuckled under his breath, a small breathy sound that vibrated in his chest. Then his hands slipped to her waist, firm and sure, as he gently pulled her off the hood and down to him.
Now standing, her body pressed against his, the kiss returned – this time deeper. More certain.
Alex tilted his head slightly, his mouth parting hers like he’d been dying to taste her all night and was only now allowed to.
His hand came up to the back of her neck, fingers threading gently into her hair, pulling her closer – not roughly, not urgently, just enough. Enough to say I want you right here. Enough to say don’t go anywhere.
Mia’s hands found his chest, gripping lightly at the fabric of his shirt. She melted into the kiss.
His thumb brushed her jaw as he kissed her again and again, slow, then a little firmer, then slow again.
All she wanted was him.
When they finally pulled apart, foreheads pressed together, breathing shallow and uneven, neither of them spoke right
away.
Alex’s fingers were still resting on her cheek, his other hand splayed protectively on the small of her back.
Mia’s lips were pink and slightly swollen from the kiss, her eyes fluttering open to meet his.
“That…” she breathed, eyes wide, voice shaky but light, “was dangerous.”
“You are dangerous” Alex says
And Mia laughed
– a small, breathless sound that sounded a lot like hope.
“Stay with me tonight ” Alex breathes on her lips
