2

She responded with a low moan, her nails digging into my skin as she pressed herself closer, her every move telling me that she didn’t want to stop either.

The world outside didn’t exist anymore.

There was no mission, no looming danger—only the heat between us, threatening to consume us both.

And maybe that was the most dangerous thing of all.

AQSA

The room was dim, the only light coming from the city skyline beyond the window.

The chaos outside felt like a distant hum, a reminder of the destruction waiting to swallow us whole.

But in here, in this small, stolen moment, nothing else existed except for him—his hands, his breath, his body pressing me into the mattress.

“Kareem...” My voice was a whisper, a mix of warning and need.

He silenced me with a kiss, rough and demanding, his lips capturing mine as if he were trying to erase everything around us.

His hand slid up my thigh, leaving a trail of fire in its wake.

My body responded instantly, arching toward him despite the voice in the back of my mind that screamed how wrong this was.

We were supposed to be in control.

Focused.

But with him, I couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe.

The danger only made it worse—made it better.

“This is a bad idea,” I gasped as his mouth moved to my neck, his teeth grazing my skin just enough to make me shiver.

I hated how much I wanted him, how much I craved the darkness he carried with him.

He was supposed to be my partner, my enemy, my—something I couldn’t quite define.

But right now, he was everything.

“You can tell me to stop,” he murmured, his breath hot against my ear.

His voice was low, rough with barely controlled desire, and it sent a jolt of electricity through me.

“But you won’t.”

He was right.

I didn’t want him to stop.

I should have, but I didn’t.

Instead, my hands gripped his shoulders, pulling him closer, as if the weight of him was the only thing keeping me grounded in a world that had spun out of control.

His fingers dug into my waist, possessive, as if he could hold onto me and keep the chaos outside at bay.

I couldn’t deny the heat between us.

It was suffocating, consuming.

His lips found mine again, and the kiss turned desperate, like we were both aware of the ticking clock, of how fragile this moment was.

Outside, the city was burning, the threat of another attack looming, but here, in this room, all I could feel was him.

“You drive me insane,” I whispered, my nails digging into his skin as he pushed my legs apart, his body hovering just above mine.

His eyes were dark, filled with the same dangerous need I felt in myself, and it made my pulse race.

The world could be ending, and I wouldn’t care—not when he looked at me like that.

“Good,” he growled, his hand sliding up to cup the back of my neck, pulling me up so that our faces were inches apart. “Because you’re in my head, too. I can’t think straight when I’m around you.”

His mouth was on mine again, harder this time, his kiss filled with frustration and heat.

I lost myself in it, in him, in the way his body fit against mine like we were made for this, for each other, even if it was built on danger and lies.

I knew I shouldn’t trust him.

I knew I should pull away.

But my body had other plans.

His hands moved down my body, sliding beneath my shirt, fingers skimming over bare skin.

I shivered at his touch, my breath catching as his hand moved lower, teasing me with the promise of what was to come.

Every nerve in my body was on fire, every inch of me screaming for more, even as my mind fought to regain control.

“I hate you,” I whispered, but the words lacked conviction.

They were a lie.

I didn’t hate him.

I hated how much I wanted him.

How much I needed him in that moment.

“I know,” he breathed, his lips brushing against my ear before he bit down gently, sending a jolt of pleasure through me. “But you’re still here.”