The storm finally broke by morning, leaving the city washed clean, the streets gleaming like glass beneath the pale sunlight. But Elena felt no calm inside her. She woke tangled in her sheets, her lips still remembering the press of Adrian's, her skin tingling with the ghost of his touch.
It had happened. She had kissed him—or maybe he had kissed her. Either way, the truth was the same: the line she swore she would never cross was now far behind her.
And yet, she didn't regret it. Not one bit.
That was the most dangerous part of all.
Adrian called that afternoon. Just hearing his name on her phone made her pulse stumble.
"Lunch?" His voice was velvet, smooth yet threaded with urgency. "I don't care where. I just want to see you."
Elena hesitated. Every logical part of her screamed that she should slow down, pull back, create distance before she lost herself completely.
But her heart betrayed her.
"Yes."
They met at a quiet restaurant by the waterfront, the kind of place shielded from curious eyes, with windows overlooking the endless sea. Adrian was already there when she arrived, his jacket draped over the chair, his sleeves rolled, his tie gone. He looked less like the untouchable businessman and more like the man who had held her so fiercely last night, as though letting her go might kill him.
When he saw her, his expression softened. Not the polite smile he showed the world. Something private. Something just for her.
"Elena."
Her breath caught at the way he said her name, like it was a prayer.
They talked, at first, about harmless things—the food, the view, the rain that had soaked the city the day before. But beneath every word ran a current, pulling them closer.
At one point, his hand brushed hers on the table, lingering a second too long. The contact sent shivers up her arm, heat curling low in her chest.
"You keep doing that," she whispered, trying for teasing but failing.
His brow lifted. "Doing what?"
"Looking at me like you see right through me."
Adrian's lips curved, but his voice was rough when he answered. "That's because I do."
Her pulse stumbled. She glanced away, struggling to steady herself. "You shouldn't say things like that."
He leaned forward, lowering his voice. "And yet I will. Because it's true. You can keep trying to build walls, Elena, but I'll keep finding the cracks."
The intensity in his gaze was almost too much. She forced a laugh, desperate to lighten the moment. "That sounds like a threat."
"No," he said simply, his tone like steel wrapped in velvet. "It's a promise."
Later, as they walked along the waterfront, the air salty and fresh after the rain, Elena felt the strange mix of fire and fear twisting inside her. Fire, because every time Adrian brushed against her, every time his hand hovered near hers, she wanted him more. Fear, because she knew—knew—that desire alone wasn't enough to keep something like this from falling apart.
They paused near the railing, watching the sea. Adrian stood so close that the warmth of him cut through the cool wind.
"You're quiet," he murmured.
She hesitated. "I'm thinking."
"About?"
She turned, meeting his gaze. "What happens to people like us?"
His expression softened, but there was determination in it too. "We stop thinking. We live. One moment at a time."
The words should have comforted her. Instead, they made her chest ache. Because she had lived that way once before—with a man who had promised forever, and then left her in pieces.
But Adrian wasn't him.
And that was the danger.
Because Adrian Blake might actually have the power to break her even worse.
That night, back in her apartment, Elena stood before her mirror, staring at her reflection as if it could give her answers.
"You can't do this," she whispered to herself.
But her lips, still swollen from yesterday's kiss, told her she already was.