Chapter 63. For the Best

2024

Adrian’s POV

Amelia was still trembling.

Her breath was uneven, her fingers curled tightly around the fabric of her dress like she was trying to hold on to something, to anything. But there was nothing left to hold on to, was there? Not after this. Not after she had let me touch her, had let herself break apart in my hands.

And fuck, the satisfaction I felt should have been enough. Should have made me feel victorious. After all, wasn’t this exactly what I wanted?

To prove she wasn’t as unaffected as she pretended to be.

To make her admit, without words, without excuses, that I got to her the same way she got to me.

And that though she acted like she couldn’t stand me, like what happened in London was nothing more than a regrettable lapse in judgment, like Liam was some kind of gift from the gods despite barely knowing him, the truth was undeniable. She was still drawn to me. Fighting it. Resisting it. But I saw it in the w