Act Like You Love Me (Jessica) novel Chapter 206

Chapter 206

Daphne’s POV

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The dinner was supposed to be a masterclass in poise, a slow and luxurious affair where I proved I could hold my own against the Tyrone elite.

But halfway through the second course, the atmosphere turned thick.

The sea breeze, which had been a relief only moments ago, suddenly felt heavy and stifling, like a warm blanket I couldn’t throw off.

A flush started at the base of my neck and climbed steadily.

I tried to focus on the conversation-Wendy was discussing the family’s latest charitable foundation-but every sound seemed amplified.

The clink of silver against porcelain sounded like a bell, and the low murmur of the family felt like it was pressing against my skin.

I glanced at David. He wasn’t eating. A thin sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead, glistening in the candlelight.

I wondered for a second if the food was the culprit; the Szechuan peppercorns were particularly potent, and from our time together, I’d gathered he wasn’t exactly a connoisseur of spicy food.

But his expression went beyond the discomfort of spicy food, there was something unsettling in it. He looked almost possessed.

Underneath the table, I felt a sudden, firm pressure. David’s hand had found my thigh, his fingers gripping the fabric of my dress with a desperate kind of certainty.

I jolted, nearly knocking over my wine, but I didn’t pull away. I couldn’t. His touch sent a spark through me that made my breath catch in my throat.

My body felt overly sensitive, the silk of my gown suddenly feeling suffocating.

What is happening to me? I thought, my mind hazy.

I tried to remain cool, to sip my water and look like a dignified guest, but my heart was drumming a frenzy pace.

Every time David’s thumb grazed my skin through the silk, my resolve crumbled a little more.

“Daphne,” he whispered into my ear. His voice was different-thicker, more sensual.

I turned to him, my eyes probably glowing with the same raw intensity I saw in his. His blue eyes looked impossibly deep in the dim light, focused entirely on my lips.

The family, the ocean, the “fake” relationship….it all felt like background noise to the magnetic pull between us,

Aaron’s voice suddenly broke the spell. “You okay there, Daye? Yu look like you’re about to melt.”

I looked up and caught the expression on Aaron’s face. If I weret so lost in the fog of my own internal fire, I wouldn’t have missed the sharp, knowing smirk playing on his lips.

He looked far too satisfied for someone watching his cousin suffer. But the thought didn’t stick; I was too busy trying to keep my seat.

David didn’t answer with words. He pushed his chair back with a harsh scrape against the deck.

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12:13 Mon, Apr 13

Chapter 206

“I need to go to the room. I’m… extremely tired. The travel is cathing up to me.”

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A ripple of concern went around the table. His mother, Quinn, aned forward. “Everything fine, David? You look quite red.”

He just nodded once, his jaw tight. He didn’t look at her; he looked at me. “I’d like to see you when you’re done with your meal, Daphne.”

Before anyone could offer a rebuttal, he turned and strode away His gait was hasty, almost a run, disappearing into the shadows of the hallway.

“I wonder what’s wrong with that idiot,” his twin sister, Mika, mumbled into her wine.

The family resumed their dinner, but I was done.

My whole body was on fire, a restless, searing heat that made it impossible to sit still. A few minutes later, I pushed my own chair back, drawing every eye to me.

I offered a sheepish, strained smile to the group.

“I think the sun got to me today too,” I lied, my voice sounding airy and strange. “I’m incredibly full and I think I need to rest. It’s been a long trip to the cruise.”

I didn’t wait for permission. I stood up and left, my heels clicking a rapid rhythm on the deck. I knew the family was probably speculating, their minds racing with whatever scandalous theories they had about what was happening behind closed doors.

At that moment, I didn’t have an ounce of shame left. I didn’t care about the pretense. I just wanted to quench the fire.

The walk back to the suite felt like a blur of heightened sensations.

When I finally reached the suite, I threw the door open and clicked it shut behind me, leaning against the wood for a second to catch my breath.

The room was dim, lit only by the moon reflecting off the waves outside.

I leaned my head against the cool wood, my chest heaving as I tried to pull in air that didn’t feel like liquid fire.

My skin was prickling, sensitized to the point that even the air from the vents felt like a rough touch against my arms.

I looked at my hands; they were trembling so much I had to clench them into fists.

I should have just asked for a juice, I thought, a desperate, hysterical laugh bubbling up in my throat. A normal fruit drink. Anything but that wine.

The crimson liquid I’d swallowed back on the deck was sitting in my gut like a glowing coal, radiating a heat that was systematically melting every bit of logic I had left.

I knew, somewhere in

century.

he back of my mind, that I was going to wake up tomorrow and want to hide under the bed for a

I knew the shame would be a monster of its own. But right now? Right now, the shame couldn’t compete with the absolute, agonizing need to be touched.

“You’re late,” a voice growled.

up

I snapped my head David was standing by the edge of the large bed, having just emerged from the bathroom. He was wearing nothing but a white towel slung dangerously low on his hips.

His skin was still glistening with water, dark hair plastered to his forehead, droplets tracing the hard, defined lines of his

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Chapter 206

chest before disappearing into the fabric at his waist..

He looked like he’d tried to drown himself in a cold shower to stop the madness, and he’d clearly failed.

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His eyes were no longer that cool, calculated corporate blue. They were dark, blown out, and fixed on me with a hunger that made my knees turn to water.

“I came as fast as I could,” I whispered, my voice cracking.

ふざ

I took a step toward him, and it felt like moving through a magnetic field. The tension in the room was so thick I could almost taste it.

Every inch of space between us felt like a barrier I needed to demolish.

We stood mere inches apart, the heat radiating off his damp skin hitting me in waves. I could see the pulse thrumming in his neck, the ragged rise and fall of his chest.

The air was charged, a silent countdown ticking away until the last of our control snapped.

Without a word of warning, David moved.

His hand caught the back of my neck, and before I could even gasp, he slammed me back against the wall.

The impact wasn’t painful, it was a jolt of reality that made my vision spin.

His large, heavy forearm pressed against the wall just above my shoulder, pinning me there, his body a solid, burning weight trapping me in place.

Then, his mouth crashed into mine.

This wasn’t a staged kiss for the cameras. This wasn’t the polite, measured press of lips we’d practiced for his grandmother’s benefit. This was a collision.

It was rough, desperate, and filled with a raw, terrifying power. It was the sound of a dam breaking after years of holding back a flood.

I let out a broken moan against his lips, my hands scrambling upward. I didn’t care about grace or poise anymore. I needed to anchor myself to him.

My fingers dug into his damp hair, pulling him closer, needing the friction, needing the pressure. I wanted to crawl inside his skin just to escape the fire burning in my own.

David groaned into my mouth, a sound that started deep in his chest and vibrated through my entire skeleton.

His other hand wasn’t still, it was roaming, possessive and frantic all over my skin.

He gripped my waist, his fingers digging into the material of my dress as if he were trying to tear the fabric away with his bare hands.

He pushed off the wall, his body crowding into mine, leaving no room for air, no room for doubt.

ངཋ

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