15• Crimson DESIRES

"I am the storm, 

and you are the calm; 

together we create a tempest that will shatter the world."

AZRAEL 

...

Zafira listened to Azrael as her eyes widened in shock as she realized,  'Both Vesper Sartori and Valerian Sartori - the twin brothers - shared the same woman named Sabrina Winter, and they all had six children together and lived as one family?'.

She was full of questions and doubts and wanted to ask Azrael more, but she held back because the whole Sartori family was watching her. Forcing a smile, she quickly finished her dinner and hurried away from the table, rushing straight to her bedroom. 

The Sartori men glanced at each other and understood the anxiousness of Zafira as they did not mind the way she left the table.

"You need to clarify a few things with her before proceeding for the next steps, Azrael", Vesper said while gracefully chewing his meal. 

Azreal looked at his fathers and brothers as he could sense the hidden meaning behind his father's words. 

"I would not like to see you repeating the same mistake as us", Valerian said while looking down at his plate. 

To Vesper and Valerian the name 'SABRINA Winter' was not only the name of their wife but she was their Goddess and their religion. 

On the other hand, In the bedroom, Zafira closed the door behind her and leaned against it as she was trying to process everything sh'd just learned. Her mind was racing and was filled with confusion and curiosity.

She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself, but the questions kept swirling in her head: 'How could the Sartori brothers share the same woman? And how did they make it work as one family?'.

Zafira knew she needed answers, but she was unsure who to trust or how much to ask. All she could do now was try to gather her thoughts and decide her next move carefully.

But suddenly, the door to the bedroom opened and Azrael walked in. 

Zafira quickly straightened up as she was surprised and a bit flustered. She hadn’t expected him to follow her as he was maintaining a healthy distance from her. 

Azrael’s gaze was calm but piercing and he seemed to understand her inner turmoil without a single word being spoken.

"Did you think I wouldn’t notice your reaction at dinner?", Azrael asked and his voice was soft yet intense.

Zafira’s heart raced. She opened her mouth to respond but struggled to find the right words and the questions she had kept bottled up on the tip of her tongue.

Azrael stepped closer and his eyes never left Zafira's, as if reading every thought that crossed her mind. She felt the weight of his presence and her heart was pounding faster with each step he took.

"Ask me. I know you have questions", he said and his voice was gentle but commanding. "

Zafira hesitated but finally spoke as her voice was barely a whisper. "How… how is it possible? Vesper and Valerian… Sabrina… the children... How can they all live together like that?"

Azrael’s expression softened, as if he had anticipated the question. 

"The Sartori family is not like any other. Their bonds, their secrets, are bound by something deeper than blood alone", Azrael replied. 

Zafira wanted to press further, to understand but the intensity in Azrael's gaze held her back. 

For a moment, they stood in silence and the air thick with unspoken truths, as Zafira tried to grasp the strange world she had stepped into.

Azrael stepped even closer. It was close enough that Zafira could feel the warmth radiating from him. His eyes softened but there was still something guarded about his expression.

"There are things about the Sartori family that would be difficult for an outsider to understand. Their history is… complicated. Papa Vesper and Papi Valerian's bond with Mama is unlike any you've known. It’s rooted in old, unbreakable vows", he said in low voice.

Zafira looked down as she was trying to make sense of his words. 

"But… why? Why choose to live like this? It sounds… awful", Zafira said and Azrael's jaw clenched slightly, as if he were debating how much he could reveal. 

"Sometimes, the people we choose aren’t a matter of reason but fate and love. Both brothers fell in love with the same woman and fortunately, she loved them back, equally and accepted them as her husbands. Their fates and hearts have tied us with Mama in a way that can’t be undone", Azrael said with an intensity that Zafira felt a chill run through her. 

She wanted to know more but a part of her feared the answers. 

This world of the Sartori family was shrouded in shadows, and she could sense that once she stepped deeper, there’d be no turning back.

Azrael’s gaze lingered on Zafira as his dark eyes were simmering with a heat that made her pulse quicken. 

The room seemed to shrink around them as an intense energy filled the space and his presence was pulling her in like a magnetic force she couldn’t resist.

Slowly, he reached out and his hand hovered near her cheek before he let his fingers lightly graze her skin. 

The warmth of his touch sent a shiver down her spine, and she felt her breath catch in her throat.

"Crimson", He murmured and his voice was rough with barely-contained desire. 

He leaned in closer and his face was only inches from hers as his warmth breath warmed against her skin. His gaze dropped to her lips and lingered there for a long while as he was breathless moment before returning to her eyes.

"It’s… impossible to stay away from you. Every moment, every breath… I want you more than I should", He admitted and his voice was thick with longing. 

His hand moved to the small of her back and drew her closer until there was no space left between them. 

Zafira could feel the strength of his hold and the powerful surge of his need that matched her own and her heart pounded as she felt his lips just barely graze hers, teasing and testing her own resolve.

Azrael's restraint was slipping and his desire was raw and palpable as he whispered her name again, his voice almost a plea, "Crimson". 

Zafira’s breath hitched and her heart was pounding as she heard him whisper her name with that irresistible, husky tone. 

'Crimson'. The way he said it sent a flush of heat through her, like fire licking at her skin. 

She was caught between wanting to pull him closer and the urge to flee and she was overwhelmed by the storm of emotions he stirred in her.

Her mind spun and a whirlwind of confusion, fear, and undeniable longing overflowed within her. 

She had been so guarded, so certain she could resist the pull he had on her. But now, standing here, with his gaze filled with raw need and his touch leaving trails of warmth across her skin, her walls crumbled.

Every look, every soft caress fueled a passion she had never felt before, yet a fear lingered in the depths of her heart. 

She was not used to feeling like this vulnerable as she was exposed to him and Azrael’s presence was like a force unraveling her piece by piece.

As he drew her closer, his eyes never left hers causing Zafira’s emotions surged. 

Desire and doubt collided within her and her pulse raced as she fought the pull he had on her- yet, at the same time, she found herself surrendering to it.

Zafira’s heart ached with the question, the realization was like a haunting whisper she couldn’t ignore. 

'Why did I never feel like this with my husband? Why did he never look at me the way Azrael does?', Zafira thought.

Her husband had always been kind, safe, and steady; a man she thought she could build a life with. But standing here, caught in Azrael's gaze, she felt things she’d never known were missing. 

There was an intensity in Azrael’s eyes. A hunger, a need that shook her to her core.

It was as if he saw her, every part of her, and claimed it with a simple look.

With her husband, there had been comfort, companionship- but never this. Never a touch that made her pulse race, never a look that left her breathless and wanting. 

Azrael’s presence unraveled her and made her feel alive in ways she had only dreamed of, and as his eyes held hers, she felt the loss of something she had never had but now couldn’t live without.

'Azrael! You are doing something to me that my soul is getting trap in your gaze'.

This question slashed Zafira’s mind like a blade as it was sharp and unsettling. 

'Why did I never feel like this with my husband? I was in love with him. We were in love. We were connected to each other but still I never felt like this with him'. 

She tried to push the thought away, but it clung to her and refused to let go. 

Her husband had been kind, gentle- everything she had thought she wanted. But never had he looked at her the way Azrael did.

Azrael’s gaze was fierce and was consuming her, igniting feelings she never knew existed within her. 

With him, every glance felt like a promise, every touch like a spark setting her soul ablaze. 

She realized this with a pang of guilt and confusion, that her husband had never stirred this storm inside her- never reached into the depths of her heart like Azrael did with just a look.

'Was it all a lie? Was it a ruse?'

A sense of longing, sharp and bittersweet, gripped her. 

She knew she shouldn’t feel this way, and shouldn’t yearn for another man so deeply. Yet here she was, trembling under the weight of his gaze and feeling things she had only dreamed of. 

And as Azrael’s touch lingered on her skin, she couldn’t help but wonder what it meant, what it said about her- and the life she thought she wanted.

"What are you doing to me and why? Tell me the truth, Azrael. Who am I to you? Am I a new plaything for you?", Zafira asked as her voice was trembling with a mix of confusion and longing. 

...

Thank you 

ShineeSunshine ♥️