Forbidden
By Misha
Disclaimer- Not mine. I’m just borrowing them for a while and will return them when I am finished.
Author’s Notes- As I mentioned before, I’m going to be trying to release Forbidden on a weekly schedule going forward, with a new chapter being released every Thursday. I am actually one chapter behind where I want to be (I intend to stay a chapter behind so that I don’t write myself into a corner and that I always know what will be happening next), so hopefully, there will be two chapters next week and then we will be all caught up. This Chapter was edited after the release of Bloodbound Chapter 12 because I knew I’d need to take it in a new direction.
Rating- NSFW
Summary- Adam and Lilith share a moment at the Awakening Ball.
Words- 2729
Chapter Four: The Ball
“What was that?” I asked Lily once Adrian had left us in our room to get ready. “On the train?”
“Uh, that was me being an amazing bff,” she pointed out, “you should be thanking me.”
I shot her an exasperated look and she just laughed. “Are you saying you didn’t enjoy bringing your fantasy to life?”
She had me there. Kissing Adam… It had been spectacular. The best kiss I’d ever had, even if it had led me confused and conflicted. What did he want with me? Had it just been part of the game? Why had he even agreed to play?
“Did you have to tell him about my crush?” I complained, still not ready to entirely let Lily off the hook.
She grinned. “Um, yeah. Besides, it could have been worse. At least I didn’t bring up the last time we played truth or dare and you named him as the famous person you most wanted to see naked, which is a bold statement in a world where Chris Hemsworth exists.” She grinned. “Hey, maybe if you play your cards right, you can make that wish a reality.”
“Lily!”
Before she could say anything else, the door opened and Adrian returned, dressed in period costume. He gave me an appreciative look and then led us downstairs to the ballroom, quickly disappearing to mingle, leaving Lily and me to our own devices.
Lily made hungry eyes at a tray of blood shots, but I vetoed that suggestion. I was still adjusting to this vampire life and I wasn’t ready to see my best friend throwback blood as if it was tequila. Lily took my objection gracefully, simply saying she’d grab one when I wasn’t around.
Just then, Adam approached and my heart leaped in my chest at the sight of him. Like Adrian, he was in period costume, and he looked even more handsome than usual.
He stopped when he saw us, pausing to kiss both Lily and I the cheek, I wondered if I imagined the fact that he lingered slightly longer with me than he did with her. I knew I wasn’t imagining the heat in his eyes as his gaze swept over my body.
“Lily, Lilith, how wonderful to see you both here,” he greeted warmly, “and don’t you both look incredible.”
“Thank you,” I told him, feeling unusually shy, thanks to what had happened on the train. I still wasn’t sure what had gotten into me.
Someone else waved at Adam, attracting his attention and he smiled politely at us. “I’ll catch up with you both later,” he said, the words sounding like a promise before he disappeared into the crowd.
Lily was smirking at me when I turned my attention back to her, but she didn’t say anything. We looked around the room, noticing a very sad looking girl standing by herself. After a moment, we agreed to go talk to her, but before we could, Priya approached, wanting to talk to me.
I was positive that I didn’t want to walk to her, that she couldn’t off me anything of interest, so I blew her off to talk to her the nameless girl, learning that she was in Marcel’s clan, which was interesting information all on its own, that there was another clan, more than one apparently.
Adrian found us then, offering dessert, though I almost got distracted by the sight of the Baron, losing my temper. I knew I shouldn’t, but something about the Baron just made me so angry.
I need a distraction, I was about to ask Adrian to dance when I felt a tap on my shoulder and saw Adam standing there. “I believe I asked you to save me a dance,” he said in a smooth voice, holding out his hand.
“Yes,” I agreed, letting him lead me onto the dance floor. I didn’t need to look at Adrian to read his disapproval, but I didn’t care. It was just a dance.
Adam swung me onto the dance floor with ease. He was an incredible dancer.
I told him as much and he smiled, “dancing was considered a required art when I was human, many alliances were made and lost in the ballroom.”
“I’ll remember that,” I said lightly, wondering what he’d been like as a human. Adrian had made him sound like a monster and maybe I needed to remember that, to forget his charm and the way he made me feel and remember how dangerous he was, how ruthless.
“Marcel has a few rooms that he has made available for his guests,” Adam informed me after a moment as he continued to lead me around the dance floor, “I was planning on slipping away and enjoying a glass of port if you’d like to join me.”
The music ended before I could answer. “The study is just off the ballroom, down the hall and to the left,” he told me in a low voice as he returned me to Adrian and then he was gone again. He was constantly catching me off-guard, I had a feeling that it wasn’t easy to get the upper hand with him.
“Did you enjoy dancing with the Senator?” Adrian asked me in a deceptively mild voice as we exited the ballroom.
I shrugged. “He’s quite a skilled dancer.”
“I’m sure he is,” Adrian commented, “he’s also very persuasive.” He sent me a deep searching look and I braced myself for the lecture that I was sure had been brewing since the train trip.
However, whatever Adrian was going to say was interrupted by Kamilah’s sudden appearance and her invitation for me to join her in the garden, while Adrian issued his own invitation to join him in the library. I looked at him and wondered what would happen if I said yes? Would I get that lecture or something more?
A part of me wanted to take him up on it. Adrian was handsome, he was kind and he’d expressed interest in me. I should pursue him. But no matter how I tried, I couldn’t force myself to want him. Not the way I wanted Senator Vega, and all I could think about was his offer.
With that in mind, I turned down both Adrian and Kamilah, instead making an excuse that I wanted to go lay down. Adrian went to offer me the room key and then frowned when it was missing, instructing me to get a servant to let me in, which suited my plans perfectly.
I ducked into the castle, but instead of heading to my room, or finding someone to help me, I headed towards the study that Adam had mentioned. I opened the door cautiously, seeing that he was already there and that he was alone.
He smirked when he saw me and I knew he’d been anticipating that I would accept his invitation. “Lilith,” he greeted, coming toward me, “I’m glad you could join me.”
I paused, before stepping further into the room, closing the door behind me, feeling a little bit like I was stepping into the lair of a dangerous animal and maybe I was. But instead of feeling afraid, anticipation flowed through me over what was to come.
Adam stepped back towards the table, picking up the bottle that sat there and pouring us each a glass. “I’ve always enjoyed a good glass of port after a meal,” he told me, “and Marcel, ever the thoughtful host, was nice enough to have a few on hand for me to choose from.”
I wondered how much this one bottle had cost and decided that I didn’t want to know. I thought about Adrian’s comment about how the Senator had money and I was sure that went for all the vampires here, except maybe the new ones, they had grown accustomed to luxury.
“Have you ever been to Portugal, Lilith?” Adam asked me now, taking a seat on the comfortable couch and motioning for me to sit as well.
I hesitated, wondering if I should sit beside him or sit in the chair beside the couch, but in the end the temptation of being near him was too much to resist and I sat down on the couch, very aware of his presence.
“No,” I answered, “I haven’t.”
“I’ll have to take you,” he offered, stretching out his arm and wrapping it around my shoulder as if it was the most natural thing in the world. “There are so many places I’d like to take you.”
“Me?” I asked in surprise. I was just Adrian’s human assistant, what interest could I be to him? And yet, hadn’t he been making it clear from our second meeting that he was indeed interested? It had only been a few short days and yet, here we were.
“Yes, you,” Adam confirmed, gazing down at my face, his attention totally focused on me. “You are fascinating, Lilith, including the way you’ve adapted so quickly to this world, I knew you were different when you argued so passionately for your friend. I just had to figure out what Adrian’s claim was.”
Oh wow.
“And now that I know he doesn’t have one, well, I’m free to make a move of my own,” Adam continued, “and continue what we so deliciously started on the train.”
I nodded silently, unable to form coherent speech because I was so overwhelmed by the idea of kissing Adam again. Still, apparently, my consent came through even without words, because I felt myself being lifted onto Adam’s lap and then his mouth was on mine.
LIke on the train, Adam was in full control of the kiss. HIs mouth plundered mine, but I submitted willingly, opening up to him, pressing myself as close as I could get.
Suddenly, Adam flipped us both so that I was on my back and he was looming over me, his mouth still ravishing mine.“You are beautiful,” he informed me, his hands slipping under my long skirts, fingertips teasing my bare thighs.
“Do you want this?” He asked, his fingers teasing the elastic of my underwear. “Do you want me?”
“Yes…” I breathed, squirming closer to him.
Of course, I wanted him. I’d always had a crush on him, but this wasn’t a fantasy, this was real and while I had a feeling I was getting in over my head, I didn’t want to miss this opportunity either.
That was all the invitation Adam needed and the next thing I knew, his fingers were underneath my underwear, teasing me before he plunged two fingers inside of me, creating a steady rhythm while he claimed me with his mouth once more, his strong body pinning me to the couch.
I was completely at his mercy, every part of me surrendering to him, and I didn’t care. I wanted it. Wanted the way he made me feel, was aroused by his causal dominance. It was hard to be afraid when it just felt so good.
It wasn’t long before I was coming apart beneath his skillful touch, my body feeling like it was on fire. Adam waited for me to stop trembling and then he removed his hand, giving me another long, lingering kiss and then pulling away.
I whimpered, not ready for the loss of him and wanting more, so much more. I wrapped my one arm around his neck, trying to pull him back, while my other hand went to the front of his pants, cupping him through the material, feeling his arousal.
I was going to slip my hand inside his pants, but Adam stopped me, his hand fastening around my wrist. “Do that and we will never get back to the ball,” he warned in a low voice.
“What if I don’t want to go back?” I asked boldly, though I knew eventually Adrian would realize I wasn’t in my room and come looking for me.
Adam chuckled lightly, “Unfortunately, there will be people expecting to see us both. Besides, I am a man who likes to savor things. This was a nice taste, but when it comes time for the real thing, I want to be able to take my time.”
“You sound confident there would be another opportunity,” I commented as I sat up, adjusting my dress, wondering if I should be self-conscious about what had just happened.
Adam smirked. “We both know there will be, all you have to do is agree.”
I frowned. Hadn’t it been obvious from my behavior that he had my agreement?
“I want you,” Adam told me in a low voice, “but I don’t share and I don’t play second to anyone. I want you, Lilith, but you need to be mine, not Adrian’s. That means you’ll stop working for him and you’ll let me take care of you in the style you deserve, you’ll let me show you the world.”
I froze, my previous heat fading away, suddenly I felt very cold. “Stop working for Adrian?”
“Right now you, you are under his protection,” Adrian reminded, “but in the eyes of the Pact, it means you are his.” There was a hint of annoyance in his voice and I knew that bothered him, which sent a strange thrill through me. “And while you are his, you can’t be mine.”
Oh.
I could barely breathe, wondering what those things were, what exactly he was offering. “What…” I began, the words failing on my lips.
“What am I offering?” Adam asked me, reaching out to cup my face, “whatever you want? I can give you the world, Lilith, all you have to do is give into it.”
“But Adrian…” I’d only known him a short time, but he’d risked so much for me, had shown so much trust in me, how could I betray that? And yet, would it really be a betrayal? Assistants quit their jobs all the time and I wouldn’t share his secrets. However, I knew how he’d feel about it.
“Yes, Adrian,” Adam agreed, letting go of my face and I immediately missed his touch, “that is the question, isn’t it? How far does his hold on you go? How loyal are you?”
“Very,” I answered immediately, “I’ve always prided myself on my loyalty. I can’t just… I need time.”
Which was why I had to say no to this offer, I realized. Even though I wanted to give into it. I wanted to throw myself at Adam and beg him to finish what we’d started, but I knew I couldn’t. At least not like this.
I had to think about it, talk to Adrian, though I knew what he would tell me. But I at least owed him the courtesy of a conversation. If I was going to leave his employ after all he had done for me, and deep down I suspected I would, then he deserved a warning.
“I can be patient,” Adam assured me as he picked up his glass again, especially if the prize is worth it.”
I flushed at the compliment, averting my gaze and reaching for my own glass, still a little overwhelmed by his attention. Being pursued by a gorgeous vampire politician was nothing I had ever expected or prepared for.
Suddenly Adam changed the subject back to small talk as we sat and enjoyed our port, the predatory air completely vanished, instead, he was polite and charming, never overstepping his place and I almost wondered if I had imagined what had just occurred between us, but I knew I hadn’t. My body was still trembling with the memory of his hands and mouth and what it had been like to come apart beneath him, the longing to be one with him.
Too soon, our drinks were finished and Adam was leading me back to the ballroom.
“Until we meet again,” he told me, reaching for my hand and bringing it to his mouth. The contact sent a thrill of heat through me, though I tried not to let him see.
A moment later he was gone and I decided to head up to my room for real this time because my mind was spinning from the encounter with Adam, trying to process what it meant and that’s when it happened. That’s when the ferals attacked, plunging the ballroom into chaos.
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