Page 59 of A Wild Darkness

I slide my hand into his, but unlike a few hours ago, it feels different, like this forced us into unfamiliar territory. “Let’s go.”

He takes a beat before following behind me as the woman lets us out. My stomach clenches, and my thoughts are all over the place. Even with the adrenaline still pulsing through my veins, I can tell the comedown from this night is going to be a bitch.

We are guided up the stairs and back through the dark library until the double wooden doors open into the chilled night air. The breeze whips at my cheeks, stinging the sensitive skin when Sebastian and I step onto the asphalt of the parking lot behind the library.

“Have a lovely evening.” She hands Sebastian his gun before a hard slam of the door echoes on us.

I stand next to Sebastian, both of us staring at his car parked in the far corner.

“What the fuck was all this?” Sebastian releases my hand only for a second to tuck his gun into the back of his pants.

“I don’t fucking know.”

Walking at a measured pace, we both reach his car.

“But we made it in,” I say. “We passed whatever test that was.”

He quickly opens the door for me to climb in, then closes it before responding. I watch as he rounds the front of the car, his head jerking in every direction, scanning the area.

“Yes, we did.” He slides into the driver’s seat and immediately starts the car. It’s dark, but the scowl on his face tells me he isn’t happy with how everything went down tonight. “I’m so sorry, Stevie.”

Biting my bottom lip, I remember what it felt like to feel his mouth on mine and how he felt, but it was for show—we did what we needed to do. “It’s okay. We had to do it.”

“Yeah. I know,” he replies, but his words sound distant.

When his car approaches the highway, we could not be further apart. Only a couple minutes ago we were connected, and now we’re not. It’s jarring.

Why am I worried about how he feels about what happened? He was acting, as was I. We’re working on a project together, and we were playing our part—that’s all this was.

But if that’s all those few minutes were, then why do my insides crave to touch him again?

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

SEBASTIAN

“I’ll walk you to your room,” I tell Stevie, as she steps out of the elevator first. She has my coat tightly wrapped around her body still, from the chill of the ferry ride. The sight of her wearing it brings me pleasure despite the tension between us on the way back after what we did.

I’ve been stuck inside my head for the last hour, wrestling with the lack of control I had over the situation. But more than all that were the insane feelings I had while we were together. The way her body moved with mine and how well we fit together. When I kissed her soft lips, a bolt of electricity shot up my back. Then I nestled myself inside her, and it was the most familiar feeling. As if I recognized another piece of myself. Obviously, it wasn’t the best scenario, but I fucking loved it.

“I live here, remember?” she playfully quips, turning my attention back to her. “I’m sure I can make it there safely.”

I clear my throat, now with more of a sense of protectiveness over her. “I know you do, but I wasn’t asking.”

She turns to me with an arched eyebrow. “Is that so?”

I blow out a breath. I’ve been in my head all night, and I’m not in the mood to go back and forth with her. I need to be by myself to think straight. “I just want to make sure you are back in the comfort of your bedroom before I go to bed. It’ll make me feel better…” Then I bend, hook an arm around her legs, and throw her over my shoulder.

“Sebastian!” she yells, wriggling in my grasp, but I clutch her tighter.

I swiftly walk down the hall to the East Wing.

Stevie hits my back trying to get me to put her down.

The lavender scent of her hair blows past my nostrils, reminding me how good she smelled only a few hours ago when I had my cock inside her. Then I kick open the door. “Not everything I do or say needs a comment or pushback from you.”

“Put me down!” She swats at my back again, but it does nothing to loosen the grip I have on her.

“Stop trying to hurt me. It won’t work,” I say as I approach the foot of her bed.