The King's Lover-Chapter 456: Antidote

The warmth of their shared conversation seemed to shrink the grand library down to the small, sun-drenched world of their table. Caira’s hands fluttered through the air as she spoke about the book in detail, her smiles a bit too wide.

She knew it, but she couldn’t help it. His presence had that much effect on her. He made it too easy for her to just be herself as he listened attentively, his gaze never straying from her face, asking thoughtful questions where needed that only fueled Caira’s tale. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

This was best. She felt happier when he was next to her. From the moment he stepped into the library, she could feel the tension in her chest dissipate. She didn’t want him away from her.

He was the antidote to the cold neglect of her marriage, to the humiliation of knowing another woman warmed her husband’s bed while she lay alone in hers.

Without Rylen, she was certain the crown prince’s rejection would have driven her mad. Rylen’s care and interest in her were the only reasons she could withstand the crown prince’s discourteous acts.

There was just something about the way Rylen looked at her and how attentive he was. He didn’t miss a single thing and didn’t act as though being in her presence was too much work. He was willing to listen to her rants about the books she read, albeit for however long.

She finished her tale with a soft laugh, the sound trailing off into the sudden, thick silence. Rylen met her gaze as she wiped tears from her eyes. She stopped, feeling the change in the atmosphere.

The air between them felt charged and enclosed. Caira became acutely aware that there was barely any space separating them, and that somehow she had moved even closer to him as she spoke.

So close were they that should they both lean closer, their lips would likely brush. Her face warmed at the thought and Caira could scarcely believe she was thinking about kissing him again. That wasn’t why she had asked him to come to the library, she lied to herself.

The blue of his eyes sparkled as his gaze, once fixed on her own, now dipped, lingering on her mouth before lifting again. Her breath hitched, the memory of their last kiss crashing over her.

Caira couldn’t describe the warmth she felt, but it was distinctively familiar to how she had felt when he kissed her. Her skin tingled and there was an ache somewhere. A distracting ache that made her mouth dry and her lips parched.

She licked her lips to help with the aching dryness and she heard Rylen take a sharp breath. "Caira," he murmured, her name a low vibration in the quiet.

She couldn’t speak. Her earlier liveliness had melted into something warm and malleable. A faint shiver passed through her as he slowly, giving her every chance to withdraw, raised a hand.

Caira wasn’t breathing as she waited for him to touch her, and when he did, Caira knew her imagination didn’t do it enough justice. His knuckles brushed her cheek, a touch so feather-light it was almost imagined, yet it burned against her skin.

She leaned into his touch, unable to resist, not that she wanted to. Caira could feel her heart pounding in her chest, threatening to explode. Rylen had touched her more often than the crown prince had even looked at her in the three weeks they had been married.

"This is a mistake," he whispered, but his hand cupped her jaw, his thumb stroking her lower lip. He was telling her to stop him, even as he drew closer.

Caira didn’t want to hear that right now; she wanted someone to kiss her as her husband wouldn’t. She didn’t know what it was like to be wanted, but she was certain she would find what she was looking for in Rylen.

However, even if she did think it was a mistake, she no longer had the capacity to stop him, not when he looked at her with such soft eyes. She could tell he would never hurt her. It was easy to get lost in his eyes, to forget the duties and vows that bound her.

Despite his statement, Caira was sure he felt just as strongly as she did. She wasn’t surprised when he closed the final distance, as it had become pretty clear she had no intention of stopping him.

This kiss was electrifying. His mouth was soft yet insistent, and when she parted her lips with a small, desperate sound, the kiss deepened. It felt as though the unbearable thirst she had was suddenly getting sated, but the more she drank, the thirstier she became.

Rylen didn’t try to discourage her again; rather, his hands moved from her face and one wound around her waist, pulling her closer until she was nearly on his lap.

His actions seemed to give her confidence, and she leaned in closer until her chest was pressed against him, and Rylen had to hold her steady so they would not lose balance with him leaning back against the chair.

His hands began to move, no longer just holding but exploring. One traced the line of her spine through the fabric of her gown, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. The other hand splayed against her ribcage, his thumb brushing the sensitive underside of her breast, making her arch into him with a sharp intake of breath.

Every rational thought screamed that this was treason, a betrayal of the crown, of her duty. But a louder, more primal part of her, so long ignored and neglected, cried out that this was what it meant to be wanted.

He broke the kiss to trail his lips along her jaw, down the column of her throat. "Tell me to stop," he breathed against her fluttering pulse, his words a hot brand. "Tell me now, or I cannot promise I will."

Caira’s head fell back, her eyes closing. She was adrift in a sea of sensation. Her fingers tightened in his hair. She didn’t tell him to stop.