All Chapters of FOUR SHADES OF DREY: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

CHAPTER 31Aurelia I woke up to my alarm and lay there staring at the ceiling for a full minute before dragging myself out of bed.The dress was hanging on my closet door where I'd left it last night. Green fabric that caught the morning light, looking expensive and intimidating and nothing like anything I'd ever worn before.I showered, taking longer than usual because I was nervous. My hands shook a little as I dried my hair, as I applied the makeup Caroline had taught me how to use. Foundation that actually matched my skin tone. Mascara that made my eyes look bigger. That pink lipstick that somehow made me look alive instead of washed out.When I finally put on the dress, I almost didn't recognize the girl in the mirror. She looked like someone who belonged here. Someone who dated the hottest guys on campus, who went to parties, who had friends and a life and didn't spend Friday nights hiding in her room reading Stephen King.I had one of the school's hottest guys as my friend, I

Chapter 33AureliaI didn't go back to class and instead I went straight to my dorm room where I collapsed on my bed with my heart still racing from the motorcycle ride and from the way Drey had looked at me when he caught me from falling. His hands on my waist had felt like they were burning through my dress and leaving marks I couldn't see but could definitely feel and even now, lying here alone, I could still sense the pressure of his thumbs against my sides and the heat of his body when I'd pressed against his back during that terrifying, exhilarating ride.My phone buzzed and I grabbed it, half expecting it to be Drey, but it was Sienna asking if I was okay and whether I'd gotten food poisoning or something because I'd been gone for over an hour. I texted back that I was fine and just needed some air and she sent back a string of suspicious emojis that made me smile despite the confusion swirling in my chest.The rest of the day crawled by and I couldn't focus on anything becau

Chapter 35Aurelia "Good," he said. "Because I'm not going to stop pushing you but I also want you to know that I see you and all the work you're doing and how brave you are for showing up every day even when you're terrified."His words made my throat tight and I had to look away because the sincerity in his voice was too much and I didn't know how to handle someone seeing me that clearly. "Thank you."We sat there until the sun was fully up and students started appearing on the paths around us and then Drey stood and offered me his hand.I took it and let him pull me to my feet and he didn't let go right away and I didn't pull away and we just stood there with our hands connected and the morning light making everything feel golden and possible."You're going to do great on that presentation," he said."How do you know?""Because you're Aurelia and you're stronger than you've ever given yourself credit for." He squeezed my hand once and then let go. "Now go show them what you're mad

Chapter 37Aurelia "Ready?" he asked.I nodded because I didn't trust my voice, he opened the passenger door for me and I slid in and tried not to think about how my heart was racing.Or how his cologne was making my head spin or how this felt different from every other time we'd been together and I didn't know what that meant but I was too nervous to ask.He drove us out of the city, the sun was setting and painting the sky in shades of orange and pink and gold.I watched him instead of the scenery because I was trying to memorize the way the light caught in his grey eyes and the way his hands looked on the steering wheel and the way his jaw tensed when he was thinking about something he wasn't saying."Where are we going?" I asked finally."Patience," he said with a smile that was almost teasing and he reached over and squeezed my knee and then left his hand there. I felt the warmth of it through the fabric of my dress and tried to remember how to breathe.We ended up at a place I

Chapter 39Aurelia "It's nothing bad," he adds quickly, reading my expression. "Just... I'm not perfect, Ari. I have things in my past I'm not proud of. Family complications you don't know about. There are parts of my life that are messy and complicated and sometimes I don't know how to navigate them.""I don't need you to be perfect," I say. "I just need you to be honest."Something flickers in his eyes. Guilt? Conflict? It's gone before I can name it."I'm trying," he says quietly. "I'm trying to be honest. About how I feel. About what this is. I just need you to know that my life isn't simple. And getting involved with me means accepting that there are things I can't explain right away."Warning bells should be going off in my head. This sounds like the beginning of a Julian situation—secret girlfriend, hidden agenda, elaborate lies.But when I look in his eyes, all I see is genuine conflict. Real emotion. Not manipulation."Everyone has complications," I say. "I'm certainly not s