Chapter 133: Hunger for More

Michael’s POV

My last conversation with Emerald was still open on my phone.

"Goodnight, Michael."

I stared at the message longer than I needed to, until a smile slowly spread across my face.

I had almost teased her when she told me she had returned to her dorm. The temptation had been strong enough that I had already started thinking about what I could say about the kiss before I stopped myself.

I could have reminded her about it. I could have asked whether she was still thinking about it. I could have made a deliberately provocative comment and enjoyed watching her struggle to respond.

But I decided against it.

Emerald needed space.

I had already seen how much the kiss had affected her. There was no reason to push her further before she had figured out what she wanted.

I locked my phone and leaned back against the sofa.

My thoughts returned to the kiss anyway. The truth was, I hadn’t kissed her simply to test her reaction. That was part of what I told myself beforehand, but it wasn’t the whole truth.

I had wanted to kiss her. I had wanted to know what her lips tasted like.

The desire had been building for longer than I cared to admit, and when I finally had an opportunity, I stopped thinking and acted on it.

I remembered the exact moment my lips touched hers. Emerald had frozen completely.

For someone who always seemed prepared with an answer, a sharp remark, or some argument whenever I teased her, she had been utterly still.

The memory made me smile.

Then she had kissed me back.

I had not expected that. What surprised me even more was what she did later. She had bitten my lower lip.

I chuckled under my breath.

That woman was a fierce little tigress. She had probably believed she was punishing me, but all she had done was make me want to kiss her again.

I shook my head.

The rest of our study session had been almost amusing. Emerald had tried very hard to concentrate, but she had failed miserably.

She would read the same paragraph several times, lose track of what I was explaining, then pretend she was perfectly focused whenever I looked at her.

I had noticed every single time, but I had deliberately said nothing.

Even though the kiss had not gone nearly as far as I wanted, I knew it had affected her. There was no question about that.

She had felt it, and had remembered it.

And judging by how often her attention wandered afterwards, I was fairly certain she had been replaying it in her head.

I let out a slow breath. Then I felt Draxen stirring.

"Did you feel it?"

I knew exactly what he meant, so I closed my eyes briefly. "Yes."

"The bond," he pointed out.

I nodded. There was no point denying it. The instant my lips touched Emerald’s, something had shifted inside me.

The matebond had responded.

It had been subtle but unmistakable, a pull deep within my chest that had nothing to do with simple attraction.

I had felt it before, in smaller ways. But during that kiss, it had been impossible to ignore.

Draxen was quiet for a few seconds before whispering like an evening breeze, "Our mate."

I did not argue with him this time. The word no longer felt as easy to dismiss as it once had.

"Yes," I admitted.

"You wanted to kiss her again."

I smiled faintly. "More than once."

I had wanted to pull her closer. I had wanted to kiss her until she stopped thinking about anything else. I had wanted to discover exactly how far she would let me go.

But I had stopped myself.

Emerald was not someone I wanted to frighten or overwhelm. If I pushed too hard, she could retreat.

She could start avoiding me and put emotional distance between us because she was not ready to understand what was happening between us.

And I had no intention of letting that happen. I would rather be patient and let her come toward me willingly.

"Now that we have tasted our mate, we will want more."

I leaned my head against the back of the sofa. "I know."

There was no point pretending otherwise.

The kiss had only made the hunger worse. And if Emerald truly was our mate, then she would eventually feel the same pull.

Draxen sounded almost smug. "She already does."

I smiled. "I think she does." ℯ

I had seen enough to believe it. The way she had looked at me, the way she had kissed me back and the way she had struggled to concentrate after it all.

Those things told me more than any confession could have.

Still, I would not rush her.

Whatever was developing between us mattered too much to risk destroying it through impatience.

"If she is truly our mate," I said quietly, "then she will come to want us in her own time."

"Lucien, I can’t be mistaken about this. She already hungers for us."

My smile widened. "That would be nice."

I stood and walked toward the kitchen. I needed a drink.

I wasn’t unsettled, but I wanted something to occupy my hands while I sorted through the thoughts running through my mind.

I opened the cabinet and reached for a bottle of red wine. As I poured a glass, I heard the guest room door open.

I glanced in that direction. A familiar scent reached me before the footsteps did.

Alaric came into view with both hands buried inside his trouser pockets and a wild smile spread across his face.

I looked at him over my shoulder.

His expression told me that whatever had brought him here, I probably wasn’t going to enjoy hearing about it.

"What are you smiling about?"

His grin widened. "I just realised something very interesting about you, Lucien."

I took another sip of wine. "I am already regretting asking."

Alaric laughed. "You should."