Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 32348 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 162(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 108(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32348 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 162(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 108(@300wpm)
And so that part of him had expected her to say no. Or play coy. Or just something worse.
But as soon as Valerian had asked her, the stars in her eyes turned into an entire fucking galaxy, and her voice took a now-familiar tone of breathlessness as she answered him with absolutely no hesitation at all.
"Yes!"
His heart slammed against his chest.
Yes.
Just like that, just like always, she had given him what he wanted.
Needed.
He cupped her face like he vaguely remembered doing in the past.
Heard her breath catch in the sweetest fucking way as he lowered his head.
And then just like before, he was covering her mouth with his.
But this time, he knew it was a kiss he would remember forever.
Poppy, Poppy, Poppy.
There had been rare instances in his life, for various reasons, that a kiss alone had been able to make his cock throb and harden with need.
But this was definitely the first fucking time that his soul had come alive with a kiss.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
He had never kissed with need coursing through his body and his soul. It was the most powerful sensation. The hottest. The most fucking addictive. And before he knew it, his large hands were covering the sweet round cheeks of her bottom as he pulled her close, his cock throbbing harder against her belly, and his tongue driving inside the innocent warmth of her mouth.
The more he kissed her, the more he couldn't get enough of her. And the more he tasted her, the more he wanted. He would’ve kept kissing her until they were both out of breath. He would’ve kept kissing her because it seemed impossible for him to stop.
Except he did stop...the moment her arms circled his neck, and he felt her fingers play with the curls of his hair.
No. Fuck. No.
His entire body jerked, and he didn’t even realize he had shoved her away until he heard her stunned cry...followed by the sound of screeching tires.
Chapter Fifteen
VALERIAN’S LAST MEMORY of his mother was Verniece running her fingers through the stubborn curls of his hair as he fell asleep on her lap.
When he woke up, it was to see his mom pale, stiff, and completely unresponsive, foam bubbling from her mouth.
He had only been seven at that time, and despite everyone's best efforts, Valerian had learned that his mother had a problem.
She couldn't handle being alone with her thoughts, and so she killed herself
Just that.
Growing up, he had been unable to wrap his head around it. How could his mother kill herself for something so stupid?
But then he kept hearing people remark how he looked so much like Verniece.
You’re so much like your mother, boy.
Valerian couldn’t remember exactly when or how it started. It was just there one day, suddenly. An incessant buzzing that only his mind could hear instead of his ears, and it was when he started to wonder if he, too, might have the same problem.
Am I going to fucking off myself the moment I’m alone with my thoughts?
POPPY WAS STILL WIDE-awake at eleven in the evening. She had also been pacing back and forth for the past hour, her mind made restless by all the things she couldn’t make sense of.
Valerian had tried so hard to convince Poppy to have herself checked and even spend the night at a nearby hospital. But the idea seemed so silly considering the accident earlier hadn’t left a single scratch on her body.
A knock on the door had Poppy quickly jumping back into bed, and she tried not to look guilty as Valerian entered her room.
His steps slowed to a halt midway, and his gaze narrowed at her. “You got out of bed, didn’t you?”
Since lying had never come naturally to her, all Poppy could do was smile weakly. “Oops?”
Frustration flashed over his features, and Poppy’s guilt increased. “I’m sorry. I know you’re worried I might have a concussion, but I’m honestly fine.”
“Since someone here refused to have herself checked, we don’t know that for sure, do we?” Valerian’s form remained noticeably rigid with tension as he folded his length into the high-backed leather chair next to her bed. “I’m sorry I had to leave for a meeting.”
“I don’t mind,” she assured him quickly.
“Have you had any headaches or nausea since I left?”
“Nope.”
“You’re sure?”
Poppy didn’t know whether to feel cherished or amused with how Valerian was acting. “I’m fine. Seriously.”
A strained silence emerged between them, and her heart ached when Valerian suddenly asked if he could explain what happened.
“Only if you want to...”
Valerian exhaled deeply, and Poppy had to curl her fingers into fists. She so badly wanted to reach out to him, but she didn’t dare risk it this time. She no longer knew what was or wasn’t safe to do.
“You might’ve noticed how I like to do things that involve a certain amount of...risk.”