Chapter 212: You are a good man
The room reeked of sex and sweat, the air thick and stifling, the sheets twisted and half-hanging off the bed. Caleb rolled onto his back, chest rising and falling, a sheen of sweat gleaming on his skin. He dragged a hand through his hair, his other arm thrown over his face like he couldn’t quite look at her yet.
Aveline lay there, her body aching in all the right ways, a dark satisfaction curling in her belly. But beneath it, something else too. Something dangerous.
She reached out, tracing a finger along the ridge of his collarbone, feeling his pulse thrum beneath her touch. He flinched slightly, but didn’t pull away.
"You shouldn’t have come here," she murmured, her voice hoarse and wrecked.
Caleb gave a humorless laugh, moving his arm just enough to meet her gaze. "When has that ever stopped me?"
She smiled, tired and tender in a way she wouldn’t admit to if anyone asked. The city was waking up outside, the faint light of dawn starting to creep in through the half-closed curtains, painting his skin in pale gold.
Aveline sighed, rolling onto her side. Caleb was already putting on his shirt. She stood up, put her clothes back on, and then left the hotel with no word uttered, as if they were strangers; maybe they were.
Aveline slipped the key into the lock as dawn’s first pale fingers crept across the city skyline. The apartment was still, the air thick with last night’s warmth and the lingering scent of spiced liquor and candle wax. She kicked off her heels at the door, every inch of her body aching in ways she couldn’t decide if she regretted or craved all over again.
The bathroom light was dim, casting her reflection in gold and shadow. She shed what little she wore, stepping into the stream of hot water, letting it scour her skin. She scrubbed away Caleb’s touch, his teeth, his scent, but not the memory — that clung to her like a bruise beneath the surface.