His hands slide up my back, pulling me closer until there's no space left for doubt between us.

"You are the only thing I'm sure of right now," I continue, conviction threading through my voice like steel. "I can't think of anything else I want more than this."

In one swift movement, his arms encircle my waist, lifting me effortlessly onto the edge of the nearby table. My legs part instinctively, and his hips press firmly against mine, grounding me with an intensity that sets every nerve ending alight. His hands cradle my face with a gentleness that contradicts his usual strength, the pads of his thumbs grazing my cheeks as if memorizing my features. When his lips find mine, the world dissolves into sensation.

It's not just a kiss—it's confession and claim wrapped into one. Every suppressed longing, every stolen glance, every unspoken word between us pours into it, igniting something primal and profound within me.

When he leans back slightly, his dark hair falls messily across his forehead. His eyes catch mine, no longer empty but alive with emotion, their flecks of amber burning in them.

“Fuck Nora. You have no idea how much I've wanted this," he murmurs, his voice rough with honesty. His lips curve into a smile, one so devastatingly wicked yet achingly soft that it makes my breath catch. "How much I've wanted you."

His hands slide lower, fingers grazing the curve of my waist before gripping my hips with a possessiveness that sends heat rushing to my core. Every touch feels deliberate and careful.

"I've wanted to touch you like this," he says against my neck, his lips trailing fire along my skin. "Kiss you like this." His teeth graze the delicate spot beneath my ear, and I gasp, my hands instinctively gripping his shoulders.

His shoulders—broad and powerful—tense beneath my fingers, and I feel the strength coiled in him, barely restrained. My hands wander down his arms, brushing over the hard lines of his biceps, memorizing every curve, every ridge of his physique like a map I want to trace forever. His muscles flex under my touch, and the heat pooling in my stomach intensifies.

When I breathe his name, soft and desperate, his entire body stiffens. His grip on my hips tightens.

"Do you have any idea hearing you say my name like that does to me?” His voice is raw, almost tortured, and his eyes darken with something primal. "It drives me fucking crazy, Nora."