Beren was fire, and Emir was willing to burn.
The room was dimly lit, golden light flickering against the dark walls, casting shadows that danced like devils. The air between them was charged—thick, suffocating, heavy with something unspoken.
Beren stepped back. Emir stepped forward.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, her breathing erratic. "You—you're acting insane."
Emir tilted his head, his dark green eyes gleaming under the low light. "Butterfly, you have no idea."
The smirk on his lips wasn't playful—it was deadly. His fingers twitched at his sides, like a beast restraining itself before the final kill. His entire body was tense, coiled, ready to snap.
Beren took another step back, but the wall met her spine. Trapped.
His voice was dark velvet. "Why are you running? You think I'll let you go?"
Her pulse hammered. She swallowed hard, lifting her chin in defiance. "You should."
Emir laughed—low, dark, dripping with danger.
"I should?" His hand came up, fingers tracing the column of her throat before gripping her jaw, tilting her face up to his. "That's adorable."
Beren sucked in a breath. "Emir—"
His grip tightened—not enough to hurt, but enough to make her breath hitch. Enough to tell her who was in control here.
"Say my name like that again," he murmured, his lips grazing her jaw, his breath scorching.
Beren shivered.
His nose ran along her skin, teasing, ghosting, never giving her enough. And then—his lips pressed against her pulse point, slow, deliberate.
She gasped, fingers gripping his shirt.
"This," Emir murmured against her skin, "this is what you do to me, Beren. You make me lose control."
His teeth scraped her neck, his tongue following immediately after, soothing the sting. A dark, wicked apology.
Beren's knees almost buckled.
Her mind screamed at her to fight back, but her body—her traitorous, weak body—was melting against him.
She hated him for this.
She hated how he knew exactly what he was doing to her.
"You drive me crazy," Emir growled, his grip tightening, his body caging hers completely.
His lips found her ear, voice dropping into something rough, raw. "And you love it."
Beren's breath hitched.
Because she did.
And that realization ruined her.