Chapter 211: Need
Aveline padded barefoot to the door. When she opened it, there he was. Caleb. Leaning against the frame like sin itself, dressed in black, eyes gleaming like he knew every secret she’d never told. That half-smirk of his was enough to undo a lesser woman, but Aveline was made of tougher things.
"Thought I’d drop by," he murmured, voice low, roughened by desire. "Didn’t figure I needed an invitation."
Aveline arched a brow, equal parts annoyed and intrigued. "Caleb... what the hell are you doing here?"
He shrugged, the movement lazy, hands tucked in his pockets. "I want you." No hesitation, no shame. Just raw, naked truth between them. "Can I come in? Or you got a client? I don’t mind waiting. Hell... better yet, I could join you two. I’ll pay double. Good deal, considering you enjoy it too."
Her breath hitched. Aveline hated how he could stir something low and dark in her with so few words. She leaned against the doorframe, pretending to think, though they both knew she already had.
"Wait here," she whispered.
Caleb’s grin widened, teeth flashing white in the dim light.
She closed the door, moving quickly but quietly, slipping back into the room, Stefan still on the couch, Aveline brushed a hand through his hair, a strange tenderness swelling in her chest. She made sure he wouldn’t wake, then pulled on a dress, quick and simple, grabbed her purse, and slipped out into the night with Caleb waiting like the devil at the crossroads.
They didn’t speak on the drive. Words weren’t necessary. The silence was thick, charged. The door shut with a soft click, but it may as well have been a gunshot in the charged quiet between them. The room smelled of old cigarette smoke and something sweet, maybe stale perfume, but neither of them noticed. Aveline turned, her gaze locking with Caleb’s, and for a moment, neither moved.