Crossing lines (Noah and Aiden) novel Chapter 48

Chapter 48

“I said we’re done,” I repeated, my voice heavy with finality, each word weighing down on me like a stone. “Get dressed. I’ll take you home.”

Because tonight, I wasn’t in the right headspace to train him.

Not when jealousy had clouded my judgment.

Not when I knew—without a shred of doubt—that I had just wounded the one person who had trusted me enough to kneel.

Noah.

And just like that, it was finished.

No more commands. No more tension thick in the air. No looming threat of punishment hanging over me like a storm ready to break. I should have felt relief. Maybe even triumph. I had stood my ground, spoken the truth, forced him to see me—not merely as his submissive, but as a person with limits, pride, and feelings.

But instead, I felt empty, like I hadn’t gained anything.

I remained seated for a moment, still bare-skinned, my chest rising and falling rapidly from the sobs that had wracked me while I spoke. My body throbbed, my skin tingled painfully, and my throat felt raw, as if sandpaper had scraped it relentlessly. But it wasn’t the physical pain or the humiliation that lingered most. It was the look on Noah’s face when he realized he had been wrong.

Not just wrong—guilty.

He had punished me for a reason that was justified—but in the wrong mindset. The moment he understood that, he stopped.

He could have kept going. He could have justified it with my harsh words, my disrespect, my bratty outbursts. God knows I’d earned most of it. I had cursed. I had pushed back. I’d even used my tone like a weapon to provoke him, to force a reaction.

But he didn’t continue punishing me—not after he knew the truth.

He stopped.

Because he couldn’t bear to keep going, knowing he had crossed a line.

And that… that revealed more about him than any lecture or scolding ever could. It was discipline, yes. But it was also integrity. Control.

That moment etched itself into my memory—the way he looked down, his jaw clenched tight, his chest rising and falling as if he hated himself for what he almost did. Like he wanted to lift the burden from my shoulders but didn’t know how.

The truth was… I hadn’t handled today well either.

I had lied to Keon right in front of Noah. I hadn’t thought about how that lie might be twisted in the wrong ears. I hadn’t considered how Noah might feel if he believed I’d been with someone else.

“No, Sir,” I said softly.

He turned, surprised.

“I’m not leaving.”

A pause.

His eyebrows knitted slightly, that unreadable expression settling over him—the one he wore when deciding whether to challenge me or hold back.

“I’m staying,” I repeated, firmer now. “If that’s still allowed.”

Something flickered in his eyes—dangerous, devastating, and warm all at once.

He didn’t say a word.

But he didn’t tell me to go either.