Chapter 381: Making The Alpha Surrender (II)
Evaline:
River froze, caught off guard. Then a low sound escaped his throat, half a growl, half a groan, as I pressed him back, my hands sliding into his hair. I didn’t kiss him to surrender... I kissed him to punish him. To make him feel the same chaos he had set loose inside me.
He let me take control, though I could feel the strength he was holding back - the restraint coiling through his muscles, the effort it took not to reclaim dominance.
My lips moved against his, urgent and furious, tasting the air between us, taking everything and giving nothing back.
His breath hitched when I broke the kiss, only to drag my lips along his jaw, then lower - to the edge of his throat. His heartbeat thundered beneath my mouth, matching the wild rhythm of my own.
"Evaline..." he breathed, his voice rough and unsteady. "You are playing with fire."
"Maybe I like the burn," I whispered back.
His hand found my waist, but he didn’t stop me. He just watched, eyes dark and stormy, as I pushed him back until the back of his knees hit the bed.
He sat down, the faintest shock flickering across his face. I didn’t give him a chance to recover. I pressed my palms against his chest, and before he could react, I climbed onto his lap, straddling him. His breath left him in a rush, and for the first time today, he looked uncertain.
I leaned in, brushing my lips against the curve of his throat. His hands clenched at my hips but didn’t move. His breath came faster, uneven. The pulse beneath my mouth raced wildly as I kissed him there... softly at first, then deeper, my teeth grazing skin just enough to make him exhale sharply.
"Evaline..." he said again, his voice no longer steady.
I smiled against his throat, savoring the way his control cracked, his head tipping back slightly as if he couldn’t decide whether to stop me or pull me closer.
"Still think you can silence me, Alpha?" I murmured against his skin.
His hand slid into my hair, his fingers curling but not tugging, holding me in place. When his eyes met mine, they weren’t cold anymore. They were molten - dark, unguarded, and achingly human.
"No," he said finally, his voice raw. "Not anymore."
And then, for once, River Thorne, the man who never lost control, sat beneath me, breathless, while I kissed the hollow of his throat, tasting the sharp edge of his surrender.
His breath was ragged beneath me - uneven, unsteady. I could feel the tremor in his chest, the tension in his arms as though he was fighting himself rather than me. I felt the thundering rhythm of his heartbeat beneath my palms. He was losing control, and for once, it wasn’t me who was breaking.
It was him.
I leaned closer, brushing my lips over the side of his neck, letting my breath fan against his pulse before my teeth grazed his skin again. His entire body tensed beneath me, and he let out a deep growl. "Evaline..." he warned, his voice rough, dark, trembling between anger and desire.
But I wasn’t done punishing him yet.
"Don’t say my name like that," I whispered against his throat before I kissed the spot again, slower this time, dragging my lips over his skin. "You had your chance to talk, River. You wasted it shouting." My words were sharp, but my tone wasn’t. It was soft... almost mocking. I wanted him to feel the same helplessness he had made me feel moments ago.
He tried to speak again, but I didn’t let him. My fingers slid into his hair, tugging hard enough to make him hiss. I pressed him deeper into the mattress, keeping him there and letting my lips trail up to his jawline, his cheek, his mouth.
The moment my lips hovered over his again, I saw the flicker of emotion in his eyes - lust, anger, guilt, hunger - all colliding and burning like wildfire.
"Little Star..."
This time, it came out like a plea.
Good.
I crushed my lips against his again, not soft, not sweet... wild. My tongue met his, and for a fleeting second, he fought back. But I didn’t give him the chance to take control. I tilted my head, deepening the kiss until his resistance melted away completely. His hands that were gripping the sheets, moved to my waist as if instinctively drawn to me.
The heat between us grew unbearable. The sound of our breathing filled the room, tangled with the faint rustle of sheets and the muted sound of our hearts pounding too fast. I could feel him trembling under me, his self-control unraveling by the second.
I broke the kiss just long enough to whisper against his lips, "You think you can silence me, Alpha?"
His jaw clenched, his breath uneven. "You are testing my patience, love."
"Of course, I am." I murmured, brushing my lips along the edge of his throat again.
He swore under his breath, a sound so low and rough that it sent a shiver through me. His grip on my hips tightened, but I still had him pinned... barely. I leaned forward again, pressing a slow, deliberate kiss to the hollow of his throat. He arched slightly beneath me and a groan escaped him despite his effort to stay composed.
I smiled against his skin. "Who’s not listening now?"
That was it.
In one fluid motion, his restraint snapped. His hands left my hips only to grip my thighs, flipping me onto my back before I could even catch my breath. A gasp escaped me as my back hit the mattress, and in the next instant, he was hovering above me - his chest rising and falling, his eyes dark and wild.
The predator had returned.
His hand came to the side of my face and he brushed his thumb over my cheek with a gentleness that contrasted the fire in his gaze. "Enough," he rasped, his voice low, almost trembling with the effort it took to restrain himself.
But the smirk that curved my lips told him I wasn’t afraid. "You sure about that?" I whispered, my fingers curling into his shirt, pulling him down just an inch closer.
His breath hitched, his control fraying again. For a moment, neither of us moved. The air between us pulsed with tension so thick it was almost suffocating. Then...
River lowered his head until his lips brushed mine once more, a silent warning and a promise all in one.
And just like that, the balance of power shifted.
He wasn’t the only one burning anymore.
I was.