Supreme Hunter of Beautiful Souls

The door closed with a low, final sound, and for a brief moment the room plunged into a silence that contrasted completely with everything that had happened until then. There were no more outside glances, no more need for immediate calculation, no more theatrics. Only them.

Kael was still standing near the entrance, his gaze wandering the space as if he were finishing an analysis that no longer needed to be done. His posture remained relaxed, but there was something there—a slight lapse in guard, almost imperceptible to anyone else, but not to her.

Exelia didn't wait.

She lunged at him with an energy completely different from the one she maintained outside, as if all the restraint she had carried until then had simply ceased to exist. Her arms wrapped around his neck in the same movement she had leaped, and Kael barely had time to react before feeling the light impact of her body against his.

Her legs wrapped around his waist naturally, as if they already knew exactly where to be, and the impulse made him take a half-step back, more out of reflex than necessity.

And then she kissed him.

It was intense, direct, charged with an urgency that didn't come from a momentary impulse, but from something that had been held back for too long. Exelia didn't do anything halfway, and this was no different. Her fingers lightly gripped the nape of his neck, pulling him closer, deepening the contact as if she wanted to compensate for every second she had spent holding back.

"I missed you..." she murmured against his lips, her voice low, slightly broken, but still carrying that tone that mixed control and desire in an almost contradictory way.

Kael let out a small sigh through his nose, not of surprise, but like someone who had been expecting it on some level. His hands automatically rose, stabilizing on her waist to maintain balance, easily supporting her weight as he held her against him.

"Was I?" he replied, his voice low, almost provocative, though there was no real question there.

Exelia let out a small laugh against him, brief but intense.

"Maintaining that pose…" she continued, tilting her face slightly, her lips brushing his before kissing him again, this time with a slightly more measured rhythm, but still intense. "…like a well-behaved secretary…"

She slid one hand over his shoulder, slowly down his arm, as if finally allowing herself to feel something beyond the constant control she maintained outside.

"…was driving me crazy." The way she said it was shameless.

Kael let out a slight, almost imperceptible smile, tilting his head slightly to facilitate her movement, his fingers pressing a little firmer against her side—not to contain her, but to maintain the closeness.

"You hide it well," he commented, his voice low, almost too calm for the intensity of the moment.

Exelia pulled her face away for a second, just enough to look at him.

"I hide everything well," she replied, with a small smile that mixed pride and provocation.

And then, without giving room for further comment, she closed the distance between them again, briefly resting her forehead against his before brushing their lips together again, this time with less haste, but no less intensity.

They didn't need to move much for their balance to be lost.

Or perhaps… neither of them was really trying to maintain it.

Her momentum, combined with his slight recoil, caused Kael to take a few more steps back until the backs of his legs touched the bed. The contact was enough. Without breaking the rhythm, without interrupting what had already begun, he simply yielded to the movement—and in the next instant, they both fell together.

The impact was muffled by the sheets, but the energy between them didn't diminish for a second.

Exelia didn't pull away.

Quite the opposite. She adjusted her body over his naturally, her legs still wrapped around his waist, now resting her hands on Kael's chest as she looked at him for a brief moment. Her eyes were intense, darker, more alive—without any trace of the restrained posture she had maintained outside.

"I'm…" she began, her breathing a little faster, but her voice still firm, full of everything she had been holding back. "…on fire ever since I was assigned as your secretary."

The confession came unfiltered.

Shameless.

Like everything about her.

She leaned forward slightly again, bringing her face close to his, her lips brushing his provocatively before kissing him again—this time with less chaotic urgency, but with an even more charged, more conscious intensity.

"I tried to hold back…" she murmured against him, her fingers now closing lightly on his clothes, as if finally letting go of the control she had maintained all along. "…but being like that, close to you, all the time…"

She let out a small, heavier breath, resting her forehead against his for a second, her eyes half-closed.

"…I can't take it anymore."

Kael watched her now more attentively, his gaze a little more focused than before, but still carrying that almost irritating calm, as if nothing there could completely throw him off balance—even when he was clearly involved.

His hands moved up her side again, firm, secure, not to restrain her, but to keep her there, exactly where she was.

"I noticed," he said, low, almost a whisper, his tone slightly heavy with something between provocation and observation.

Exelia smiled slightly at that, but it wasn't a gentle smile.

It was… sharp.

"Noticed and did nothing," she replied, tilting her head slightly, her eyes fixed on him intensely.

A short pause.

And then, even lower:

"Cruel."

Kael let out a small, almost inaudible laugh through his nose, as he tilted his face slightly, drawing closer again.

"You didn't seem to be suffering that much."

The answer came easily.

Natural.

Exelia raised an eyebrow slightly, as if challenging it, and then slid one hand to the collar of his shirt, pulling him gently.

"Now I am," she murmured, her voice lower, more charged.

And then she kissed him again—unhurriedly, but without softening what was there. The intensity no longer came from impulse, but from choice.

Outwardly, they were strategy, control, dominance.

There…

They only needed to deal with what was already inevitably happening.

Kael didn't respond with words. His hand slid down the curve of her back, firm, deliberate, until it found the base of her right buttock. The slap came dry, strong, echoing in the silence of the room—a sound that mixed impact and possession.

Exelia arched her back against him, a hoarse groan escaping her lips before she could stifle it. Her fingers closed on the fabric of his shirt, her nails pressing lightly.

"Cruel," she repeated, breathless, but the tone was provocative, not a complaint.

He stared at her, his eyes dark and intense.

"Take off that skirt," he ordered, his voice low but laden with an authority that admitted no hesitation. "And that blouse."

Exelia held his gaze for a second, a slow smile forming on her lips. She moved with deliberate calm, as if she were now in control of the pace—even under his command. Sitting on top of him, she reached for the buttons of her blouse, unbuttoning them one by one, slowly, letting the fabric slide down her shoulders to the bed beside her.

Underneath, black lace lingerie clung tightly to her body, highlighting every curve. Her bra was thin, almost transparent, and her breasts were firm, her hardened nipples visible through the fabric.

Kael didn't wait. His hands encircled her waist, pulling her down against him as he leaned forward. His mouth found her right nipple through the lace, biting gently at first, then harder, sucking and licking as his tongue pressed the wet fabric against her skin.

Exelia let out a long, trembling sigh, her fingers digging into his hair, pulling him closer.

"You… don't waste any time," she breathed, her voice faltering slightly.

He pulled away for a moment, his gaze sweeping over her body with an almost palpable intensity.

"You've waited long enough," he replied, his hands sliding down the sides of her skirt. "Now take it off."

She lifted her hips just enough for him to pull her skirt down, helping with quick movements until the fabric came undone around her legs and was thrown off the bed. Now only her black lingerie and sheer stockings remained, which he ripped off with a brusque, unceremonious movement of his hands.

Exelia was completely exposed on top of him, breathing rapidly, her dark eyes fixed on his face.

"Better?" she asked provocatively.

Kael didn't answer. Instead, he quickly rolled over, reversing their positions—now he was on top, his arms on either side of her head, his body pressing hers against the sheets.

"Much better," he whispered, before capturing her lips again in a deep, devouring kiss, while one of his hands slid down her body, past her stomach, until it found the warm wetness between her legs.

Exelia arched against his hand, a moan muffled by the kiss.