A Kiss At Midnight (Delilah and Caelum) novel Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Caelum’s grip tightened around the paper.

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“I…” he started, then stopped almost immediately, like the word had caught on his tongue, as his eyes flicked away from;

mine

They moved round, staring everywhere but mine, before drifting back to me then away again.

“I’m not..”he begins again, quieter thẞ time, “I’m not chickening out..” he manages to say, even though it came out uneven, a little too fast at the end, and I wasn’t sure if he was trying to outrun his own nerves.

I tilted my head to the side, studying him. “Hm,” 1 hummed. “Doesn’t really sound convincing.”

He exhaled through his nose, his tightening. “I said I’m not,” he repeated, firmer now, but the pink on his neck gave him away completely.

Fighting the smirk from making its way to my face as I pushed a little closer, just enough to see the way his shoulders stiffens in reponse.

“So,” I said causally, “you’re not running away this time?”

That seems to have done it as his hand once again tightened around the paper in his hands and for a second he just stared at

“I..I didn’t run away,” he says finally, though his voice had dropped even lower, causing my lips to twitch.

“Mhm.”

“I left because..” he cuts himself off, clearly realising he was about to dig himself deeper.

My brow raised as I waited for him to continue, instead he gulps, his eyes narrowing slightly like he was trying to regain control of the situation.

“You’re doing that on purpose,” he muttered.

“What am I doing, Caelum. Tell me?”

He looked at me then, properly this time, and the flush on his face deepened just a shade. “That,” he said flatly, “standing there, talking like that.”

I smiled faintly. “Still doesn’t answer my question,”

The silence stretched again, then quietly. “No.”

Raising a brow, I teased him a little bit. “No what?”

His jaw flexed once. “No,” he repeated more controlled now. “I’m not running away.”

There was a beat between us for a while, before straightening. A satisfied smile makes its way to my face. “Good,” I said simply.

His expression didn’t change much but his shoulders loosened just a fraction, letting go of the breath he was holding without realizing it, and I didn’t miss it.

“Come,” I said simply, already turning on my heel.

Caelum didn’t answer straight away, then I heard the chair scrape back as he followed me to to the living room.

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Chapter 19

That was the thing about him, he complained, he resisted, but he still followed anyway like logic always won out over instinct.

The living room was quieter than the dining area, softer light, more space. My gaze wandered round, spottting a single couch sat angled near the window.

Perfect

Not giving him the time to overthink think it, and the moment he stepped closer, I reached out and pushed him down onto the couch. He freezes up instantly, his hand hovered slightly, unsure of whether to stop me or just… process me.

His gaze flickers up to mine. “What are you…”

“Relax,” I cut in, already leaning closer, close enough that I could feel the shift in his breathing.

His posture stiffens even more, and fhen he lifts a hand, not touching me, just to stopping any next movement I planed on making.

“Wait.” That single word was quieter than the red of him.

I paused, raising a brow again, for the third time in span of minutes. His eyes doesn’t move away from mine this time, but I could see it, the fact that he was thinking too hard again.

“I don’t…” he started, cutting himself off again as his jaw tightened. “It’s just…” he exhaled slowly, “it’s very quiet.”

There was a beat, as I tried not to let out a sigh and instead asked. “Do you have a speaker.” My voice comes out flat.

Caelum nods at this, still looking a little tensed. I straightened a bit, reaching for my phone before walking over to where he pointed toward the mantel.

A small speaker sat there, plain and black, and I connected it without asking. Soft music fills the room moments later, low, warm and slow. The kind of sound that made everything feel closer than it actually was.

A track from Aurora Vale started playing, Don’t Let It Fade

It wasn’t exactly loud party energy not it worked either way, or maybe a little too well.

Caelum watches me from the couch. “My brother listens to Aurora Vale,” he said suddenly, causing me to glance over my shoulder.

“You have a brother?”

“Yeah,” his reply came instantly. “He’s twelve this year.”

I walked back toward the couch slowly. “Didn’t know that.”

“Not many people do,” he said simply.

That made sense, given his personality, I doubt he would go around sharing his personal life to people he barely spoke to.

I leaned down a bit in front of him, closer just like the last time, and this caused his attention to shift again, his gaze flickering briefly toward my face, before moving lower, and then back up again like he caught himself.

But it was too late, since I noticed. No matter how subtle he was trying to be, how was still able to catch the tiny little fact of how they lingered a second too long.

The silence streches between us, filled only by the music

He clears his throat quietly. “You’re….um….very comfortable,” he muttered.

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Chapter 19

1 tilted my head to the side. “And you are too tensed.”

“I’m not.” his voice said otherwise.

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I leaned in just a little bit, and his breath hitched. There was a flicker in his expression and I could tell he was trying very hard not to react to how close I was.

Trying not to grin at that fact, my gaze drops briefly to his mouth without thinking about it. “Don’t worry, we are going to take things slow,” his hands fall to the side of him as I stood in between his parted legs.

“Just so you don’t freak out on me again, how about double tapping on my thigh if it gets too much for you.” I leaned down to the shell of his ear, taking his hands and letting his fingers run up my thighs untill I place them at my hips.

My gaze held his for a moment, watching him gulp nervously. I grinned at this before I began to kiss my way down, from his ear to his neck, hearing each hitch of breath he takes.

“Let me introduce you to a whole new side of life you have been pretending didn’t exist,” As the words left my mouth, his grip on my hips grew firm.

“A world full of pleasure.” I rolled my hips into him and he clutches the material of my skirt.

“We already know what turns you on, but we are going to explore more of it.” My pace slowers.

I pressed soft lingering kiss along his neck, my fingers sliding slowly up to the back of his neck, and to his brown hair, as I gently tugged at the strands, till a low groan sliped from him before he could stop it.

“Good?” I asked, placing myself on his lap.

“So…good.” His voice comes out strained when I push mg hips down, using his arms to hold me, as I rolled my hips.

“Deli… Delilah.” Caelum moves his head to the side, allowing me a better access to his neck, and i let my lips run along his collarbone, before slightly sucking on the exposed skin which makes him push his hips up.

“Good. Keep doing that.” I instructs when he pushes his hip to meet mine yet again. “Tell me, do you like it when I do that?” I asked, sucking gently on the skin close to the base of his neck, hard enough that I was sure it had left a mark.

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