Chapter 39
~ NYSSA
I smelled Rowan the minute he approached, but I brushed it off thinking it was just my imagination.
Clearly I was wrong, considering he was standing in front of me, lips curved into a cruel smirk and eyes trained completely on my tits.
He didn’t even try to hide the fact that he was staring and my stupid body refused my firm instructions not to react.
My nipples hardened of their own accord, and I felt a flutter in my lower stomach that went down to the middle of my thighs.
“You’re a pervert,” I snapped and he laughed cruelly.
“You’re turned on from being watched my a pervert. I think that says a lot more about you than it does me, wouldn’t you agree p>
I opened my mouth to retort, but nothing would come out. It was like I’d forgotten how to speak all of a sudden.
My cheeks turned bright red.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about his reaction when Aria first picked out the outfit, but now that I was forced to come face to face with it, I couldn’t form words.
With a curse, I turned on my heels and began walking. I had no idea where I was going, but I just knew I needed to get away.
I heard him call out to me, but I didn’t stop. I kept walking, away from the bonfire, away from the loud music
There was an alley right up ahead that was dark enough that no one would see me. I picked up a sprint.
I wasn’t sure why I was running, or what I wanted to get away from. I just knew that it was the right thing to do. It was the only thing that made sense at the moment.
The darkness of the alley swallowed me whole and I finally came to a stop, chest pounding and breath heaving as I tried to relax.
“Are you out of your damn mind p>
For the second time in five minutes, I jumped.
Rowan stood at the edge of the alley, stormy eyes trained on me. I hadn’t even heard him follow.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I said simply. “You should go p>
“Not until you explain why the fuck you just ran. Is this because I stared at your tits? You need to grow up, Nyssa. They’re just tits p>
My cheeks burned even brighter. “Shut up p>
“What? You don’t like the word tits? Get fucking used to it. You have them and they’re on full display. Everyone with eyes is looking at them. Hell, I’m sure even that little frat boy you were talking to earlier was ogling them p>
I didn’t have a comeback because he was right.
The boy had initially approached me to ask for directions, but he linger far longer than he should have and he barely looked away from my tits the entire time.
Still, that didn’t explain why Rowan was so bothered by it. I was the one who had to stand there for a full thirty minutes and listen to him ramble.
“This is ridiculous,” I snapped. “Just leave me alone p>
He stepped further into the alley, blocking off all light coming from the bonfire.
It was easy to forget just how large he was. He took up space like it was made for him, and the sheer power that radiated off him was enough to make my knees weak.
He stepped closer, his scent quickly filling the small alley and infiltrating my nose. I couldn’t breathe without getting a lungful of him.
I took a step back to create some distance but my back hit the brick wall behind me.
Rowan stepped closer, until he was standing in front of me. I craned my neck to look at him, the sound of my heartbeat loud in my ears.
“You are the most infuriating woman that I know,” he ground out. “You piss me off with your annoying fucking voice, and your presence, and your fucking hair and see through clothes p>
With each word, he stepped closer to me until he was directly in front of me, our chests brushing with each ragged breath that we took.
He looked pissed; his brows were furrowed in annoyance and the vein on his temple pulsed violently, but I wasn’t scared.
The man in front of me was capable of single handedly wiping out an entire town, and yet, all I felt was a building pressure in my lower belly.
I clamped my thighs together tightly, praying to the goddess that he wouldn’t smell the embarrassing proof of what his words were doing to me.
“If you hate me so much, then let me leave,” I managed out. “You’re the one keeping me here p>
He laughed cruelly, his chest shaking as each ragged sound was forced out of his mouth.
His large hands caged me in as he placed them on either side of my head… as if his scent wasn’t already driving me insane.
I swallowed, turning my head to the side, hoping to get a bit of reprieve.
A low groan left his lips, then I felt it, his mouth, soft and curious against the column of my throat.
Goosebumps danced across my flesh.
I should’ve told him off, should have said something to him, but I was left tongue tied. My mouth dried out like sandpaper as his lips ghosted over my skin explanatively.
“I wish I could,” he whispered. “I wish it were that easy p>
Before I could speak, a high pitched squeal filled my ears.
Rowan pulled back sharply, as if he was burned. He turned away from the entrance, running his fingers through his hair with a curse.
I blinked through my lustful haze, locking eyes with the couple that interrupted us. They were young… eighteen at most.
“Sorry,” the girl mumbled, clearly drunk. “We didn’t know this alley was taken p>
She scurried off with her boyfriend in tow.
I turned to Rowan to speak, but before I could open my mouth, he was already walking away.