Ambergris Locakboxes Traveled Salt Routes by Hugh Calder 137
Chapter One Hundred And Thirty–Seven: I Waited For Five Years.
The house was too quiet when they returned.
Emily was staying with Abigail, which meant there was no performance required tonight. No pretending. And no smiling for anyone.
Just them alone.
Cassienne stepped out of the shower first, steam still clinging to her skin. She wore a soft ivory silk nightdress that flowed around her body in a way that made it impossible to ignore she was a woman.
Not a wife. Not a CTO. Not NULLWRAITH.
Just a woman.
She paused in the bedroom, towel in hand, drying the ends of her hair.
Dreston walked out of the bedroom moments later, water still glistening on his collarbone. He had used another bathroom. He wore loose charcoal lounge pants and nothing else. His hair was damp, darker than usual, curling slightly at the ends.
For a second, neither spoke. The silence wasn’t calm. It was loaded.
Cassienne turned to him. Her eyes blazed. “Why did you do that?”
Her voice wasn’t loud. But it carried weight.
Dreston didn’t pretend not to understand. “Do what?”
“Át dinner.”
She faced him fully now.
“You humiliated me in front of your family.”
His jaw tightened. “I didn’t humiliate you.”
“You told them I wouldn’t accept your love. You made it sound like I’m the villain.”
“You are rejecting me.”
Her breath caught.
“That is not the point.”
He took a step closer. “Then what is the point, Cassienne?”
She let out a shaky laugh. Not amused. But hurt. “The point is… you don’t get to suddenly love me now.”
His brows pulled together. “What does that mean?”
Her eyes glistened.
“It means that for five years, Dreston… five years… you didn’t even look at me.”
He flinched. And she stepped forward.
“You don’t even know the color of my panties.”
Chapter One Hundred And Thirty–Seven I Waited For Five Years
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The words came out before she could stop them. And the room went still.
Dreston’s face changed. Not anger, but with pain.
“You don’t know how I like my hair when I sleep. You don’t know what perfume I wear. You don’t know how I take my tea when I’m upset.”
Her voice trembled now.
“And now you stand in front of everyone and talk about babies? About love?”
The hit landed. And he swallowed hard.
“I stayed married to you for five years,” she continued. “And you never once reached for me.”
He finally spoke, voice low.
“You think I didn’t want to?”
She froze.
“You think I didn’t fight myself every night?”
Her chest rose sharply.
“You said you didn’t touch me because you didn’t want to hurt me more.”
“I didn’t,” he replied.
“You already were hurting me!”
Her voice cracked. The truth hung between them. He moved closer again.
“I was a coward.”
The admission was quiet and honest.
“I thought I was protecting something that didn’t even exist anymore. And in doing that… I lost you.”
Her breathing softened.
“But now?” she asked. “Now you suddenly love me?”
“Yes.”
The answer came instantly. There was no hesitation in it.
“Yes,”
He stepped into her space now.
“I love you, Cassienne. Not because you’re famous. Not because you’re brilliant. Not because the world wants you.”
His voice deepened.
“I love you because when you laugh, I forget how to breathe. Because when you’re angry, I still think you’re beautiful. Because when you were in that lab today and looked at me like you were afraid to trust me…”
He lifted his hand slowly and cupped her face.
Chapter One Hundred And Thirty–Seven I Waited For Five Years.
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“It broke me.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I don’t trust you,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“And I like Corren.”
The words were soft. But sharp.
His jaw clenched.
“I know that too.”
“Then why are you doing this?”
“Because I’m done pretending.”
He leaned closer.
“And because I can’t keep watching you belong to someone else.”
The air shifted between them, sending something fragile and dangerous.
Her hands trembled where they rested against his chest.
“You’re angry because I won’t accept your love,” she said quietly.
“I’m angry because you won’t give me a chance to prove it.”
*Their faces were inches apart now. The tension was unbearable.
Her eyes dropped to his lips. His breath brushed her skin.
“You’re doing everything now,” she whispered. “Everything I begged for back then.”
“I know.”
“And I hate that I still want it.”
That confession snapped something out in him, and he kissed her.
This time, it wasn’t soft, not careful, but hungry. Five years of restraint collided at once.
She gasped against his mouth, but she didn’t pull away. Her hands slid up his shoulders.
His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer until there was no space left between them.
The kiss deepened. It was hot and desperate. It was real.
She rose onto her toes. He lifted her slightly without thinking, hands tightening at her hips. Her fingers tangled in his damp hair.
For a moment, nothing else existed. No Tina. No Corren. No past. No future. Just heat. Just need.
He walked her back without breaking the kiss. Her back brushed the wall. And her breath trembled. His hand moved to her thigh instinctively.
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Chapter One Hundred And Thirty–Seven I Waited For Five Years
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She didn’t stop him. And she didn’t protest. Her body responded before her mind could.
She wanted him. And for the first time. She wasn’t afraid of wanting him. But he broke the kiss suddenly, and pulled back hard.
Her eyes fluttered open. She looked confused.
“Why did you stop?” she asked, barely above a whisper.
He pressed his forehead against hers.
“Because if I don’t stop now… I won’t.”
Her pulse thundered.
“I don’t want you to regret this tomorrow,” he said.
“I don’t want you to wake up and think I took advantage of your emotions.”
Her lips parted.
She had been ready. And she saw it. That shook him more than anything.
His voice lowered. “When you come to me, Cassienne… I want you to be certain.”
Her heart shattered and healed at the same time. Then he stepped back slowly. The space between them felt colder
now.
She looked at him like she was seeing him for the first time. “You stopped,” she said softly.
“I’ve waited five years,” he replied. “I can wait a little longer.”
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