Semua Bab The Den of Desires (Erotica Short Stories): Bab 21 - Bab 30

SERAI left him while he slept.At least, I hoped he was asleep.Knox’s arm was still draped loosely around my waist when I peeled it off, careful not to stir him. The room smelled of sweat, sex, and something heavier, something dangerous. My thighs stuck together, sticky with the evidence of everything we’d done. My core still pulsed, slow and rhythmic, aching with the aftershocks of him.I grabbed my robe and slipped it around me, tying it loosely. It was the only thing I wore. The hallway was quiet, and the house still slept as I slipped back into my room. Jared was right where I’d left him, sprawled out on the bed, mouth slightly open, snoring softly into the pillow. I stared at him for a beat, heart pounding.I had just cheated on him.Not just with anyone but with his brother.My stomach twisted. My legs still trembled.I went straight into the bathroom and locked the door behind me, leaning back against it for a breathless second. The scent was still on me. He was still on

SERAThe satin clung to my body like a second skin, the delicate lace tracing over my shoulders and dipping down the low-cut back. The bridal boutique was quiet, save for the muted chatter of attendants and the hum of soft music drifting from the overhead speakers.I stared at myself in the mirror, not even seeing the dress.My fingers twitched at my sides. I blinked once. Then twice.“Sera,” Lana said gently behind me. “You keep zoning out.”I turned toward her, forcing a smile. “Sorry. I’m just—”“Don’t say ‘wedding stress.’” She raised a hand, cutting me off before I could finish. “Because you’ve used that excuse three times today already.”I sighed and looked away, studying the soft fall of the train like it held the answers to my life.“You’ve been… off,” she continued, standing from the couch and walking toward me. “Since you got back from the island. You’re jumpy. Always checking your phone like you’re waiting for a bomb to go off. And this—” she motioned to the dress, to the

SERAIt had been a week and some days.A full ten days since that night with Knox.Ten days since I heard his voice, I felt the rasp of it crawling down my spine, coaxing things from me that I had no business giving to another man, let alone him.Since I came undone from my hand and his voice urging me on, since I watched him spurt come all over his belly, my pleasure bringing him pleasure.Phone sex.I have never tried it before till him, and it had been the most exhilarating experience ever!But not once since then had I replied his messages. Not to the two “Hey” messages he sent the morning after. Not to the missed call three days later at 1:29 a.m.Not to the voice note I still haven’t dared listen to.All I did was send him a message to not come to the wedding.Then I archived everything. Not deleted, just tucked away. Like folding a letter, I shouldn’t have opened in the first place and slid it into a drawer I promised never to reopen.I told myself it was discipline. Strength.

SERAI stood there, breathless, heart hammering in my ears like war drums. My lips still tingled from his kiss. My thighs clenched around his fingers, still throbbing from the pressure he had on my clit.Outside that door, everything was waiting for me, my vows, my future, and my husband.But inside this room, inside this moment… there was only him.Knox.The man I wasn’t supposed to want. The man I couldn’t stop wanting.I knew what I was supposed to do. What a good woman would do. What a loyal bride should do.I should’ve stepped away. Told him it was over. Pushed him out the door and gathered what was left of my dignity like scattered rose petals.But I didn’t move.I looked at him, really looked at him. The sharp lines of his jaw, the fire in his eyes, the promise of destruction in the curve of his smirk. His body was tense, waiting, watching me, chest rising with slow, deliberate breaths like he was restraining himself.But I didn’t want him to restrain himself.I wanted him to

SERAI sat cross-legged on the couch, the half-melted tub of vanilla and caramel swirl ice cream nestled in my lap.The room was a mess. Dishes in the sink, laundry in a heap by the hallway, and my sketchpads scattered on the floor like forgotten promises.I hadn’t been to work in days. Couldn’t even imagine showing my face there. Not with the headlines still making rounds.SERA MCFADDEN AND JARED REEVES ESTRANGED. WHO IS THE FRAUD?Classy.I dipped the spoon into the tub again and took another bite. Cold. Sweet. Numbing. Just what I needed.When the knock came, I didn’t move at first. Part of me hoped they… whoever they were would just go away. But then it came again, soft, and patient. I sighed, pulled the blanket off my legs, and dragged myself to the door.I opened it and blinked.“Lana?”She didn’t wait for an invitation. She stepped in like she always did, arms full of something, takeout, maybe, and wrapped me in a tight hug.“I brought Chinese,” she said softly. “Figured you h