40

~Darlina's POV~

Emmett flopped into his bed after dinner that night, causing a small smile to form on my lips as I tugged off his shoes. He wasn't super drunk, but he had definitely gotten a little bit tipsy.

I finished tucking him into bed and set a few Tylenol on the nightstand beside the bed along with a cup of water, quietly leaving the room after I turned off the lights. When I exited Em's room, I found that Atlas was waiting in the hallway, his large frame leaned against the wall.

Startled at the sight of him just standing there, I jumped, placing a hand on my chest when I quickly realized it was just him. "You scared me." I told him in a quiet voice, not wanting to risk waking Em.

He ran through his loose hair and gave me a dry smile, hands stuffed deep in his pockets. "We need to talk about earlier, Darlina." He said after a brief moment of passing silence between us, though he sounded reluctant to say so. I almost grimaced, my heart racing in my ears as I recalled what had happened earlier today in the pool, making me flustered all over again.

But within that flustered feeling, there was also something else. I was scared, not of him of course, but of the idea that he might regret allowing that to even happen. I worried about what he might think or say about the near kiss, worried that he might go back to acting just as he had before. After all, it wasn't likely that he had feelings for me considering he hadn't even wanted to be so much as a friend to me.

So the fact that he might say that it was just a heat of the moment action, that it could never happen again, made me nervous. Too nervous to face him, I faked a yawn and hoped it was believable. "Actually, I'm really tired. Maybe we can talk about it another time?" I suggested, already slipping past him without waiting for a response.

Although I felt a bit bad, I didn't wait for a response. I just booked it to my room, locking the door so he couldn't come in.

**

It was late at night when I woke up, my mouth feeling really dry as soon as I peeled my eyes open sleepily. I frowned, pushing my hair out of my face while I squinted at the clock on the nightstand beside my bed, trying to focus on the red numbers.

The numbers read two thirty seven AM, causing me to huff in slight annoyance at the fact that I had only been asleep for a little over three hours. For a second I debated going back to sleep, but the dryness of my mouth spurred me to reluctantly peel off the blankets and slide out of bed.

I quietly exited my room and navigated my way through the pitch black cabin, as all the lights were off. When I entered the kitchen I flicked on the light, making it easier to see. Pushing up on my toes, I grabbed a cup from the cabinet with a little bit of struggle, heading to the fridge to fill it with water. Chugging the cup of water, I turned around and choked on the water as I gasped, startled at the sight of Atlas just standing there.

Coughing, I set my cup on the counter and glanced up at him. "Do you have to scare me half to death every time I turn around?" I asked exasperatedly, clearing my throat.

Atlas just chuckled as if he found it amusing that he had scared the life out of me, mirth in his deep blue eyes. "It's not my fault you don't pay attention to your surroundings." He retorted, causing an embarrassed flush to creep up my neck. I took another sip of water, peering down at the floor to avoid looking at him when I realized he was shirtless.

"So what are you doing in here?" I asked, noticing that he hadn't moved to get anything to drink or eat, so I wasn't sure what he had come in here for. He hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. Then, he sighed, pinning me with his gaze. "I know what you were trying to do earlier, you know." He stated, leaning against the counter directly in front of me. "But you're sorely mistaken if you think that you can avoid me."

Taken aback, my lips parted as I looked up at him like an idiot, knowing exactly what he was talking about. Clearly, the fact that I had been avoiding him earlier was entirely obvious to him. "You still want to talk about the kiss." I assumed, knowing I was right.

"But if you want to tell me it was a mistake, and that it should never happen again, please don't. I'd rather just leave this unspoken of, if that's what you have to say." I told him quietly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. He raised an eyebrow, taking a step closer to me. "Is that what you've been worried about?" He muttered curiously, to which I nodded reluctantly in affirmation.

He scoffed, bracing his arms on either side of my hips against the countertop behind me. I shifted nervously at the little amount of distance between us, glancing up at him from beneath my lashes.

"You're an even bigger fool than I thought you were, then." He hummed, ducking his head closer to mine.

Flustered, I turned my head to the side, unable to look him in the eye. "I'm not a fool." I defended weakly, which just made him chuckle as if finding my words funny. "You are." He insisted lowly, his lips grazing my ear as he spoke. "And I know this because you know nothing about how fucking mesmerizing I find you, since the moment I met you."

My whole face felt hot, flattered but equally as confused. "M-Mesmerizing?" I echoed, stunned by his confession. Was he being serious, or was he just messing with me? I had never gotten the impression that he found me anything but perhaps annoying, a nuisance.

"I don't understand..." I said quietly, staring at the floor. "You don't want to be my friend, but you claim to find me mesmerizing?" I asked, gasping when he grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him, our eyes meeting. His were dark, staring at me with intent and something that made my knees weak. Still, I spoke. "You must be messing with me."

Atlas scoffed, sliding his hand from my chin to the back of my neck, still not allowing me to look away. "I'm not." He assured without hesitation. "Every time I see you, you drive me nuts. I fuckin' hate it." He admitted softly, glancing down at my lips. His tongue swiped across his bottom lip and my lower belly pooled with heat, causing my body to flush at the affect he had upon it. Nothing had even happened, yet I was flustered and overwhelmed, weak in the knees.

"So you still don't like me, but you...find me mesmerizing?" I asked, confused. I felt his fingers curl into my hair and placed a hand on his arm, searching his gaze. "No. I like you and I don't know why. I get jealous and I don't know why. You steal my attention and I don't know why, and I wish I could hate you for it." He muttered, hooded gaze still locked on my lips as he leaned a little closer so our breaths mingled. "But I just don't."

Our lips brushed and I shivered, waiting for him to kiss me. I held tighter to his bicep, my chest rising and falling heavily as I struggled to calm down. "P-Please." I stammered weakly, incredibly impatient.

"Please what, Darlina?" He hummed, pressing his body into mine. I could feel every defined muscle of his shirtless torso against me, and dug my nails into his skin slightly. "Tell me what you want."

"Kiss me." I responded in a whisper, flicking my gaze from his eyes to his lips. He paused, as if thinking about it, before he leaned down and sealed his lips over mine finally. I felt him wrap an arm around my waist and he tugged me into his chest, still gripping the back of my neck with his other hand as his mouth moved against mine slowly, like he was familiarizing himself with my mouth.

He kissed me slowly at first but became more urgent, his lips moving needily against my own until I felt a soft nip of his teeth on my bottom lip. A surprised gasp left me and he smirked slightly, tugging it with his teeth before letting go to let it bounce back into place. I shuddered as his hand slid down the curve of my spine, his tongue gently swiping across my bottom lip.

I parted my mouth and his tongue slid past my lips, the cool metal piercing in his tongue the first thing I noticed as our tongues met. It was a small metal ball, and I curiously swiped my tongue over it, causing Atlas to break away with a husky groan that made the spot between my thighs ache.

Breathing heavily, I lulled my head back into his hand and subtly clenched my thighs as his teeth nipped at my earlobe. I shuddered against him and sighed out a shaky breath as his tongue licked a gentle, teasing stripe up my neck. Stopping just beneath my ear, I felt him bite at a sensitive spot before he began sucking, drawing a subconscious, quiet moan from my lips. He groaned softly at the noise and withdrew, breathing just as heavily as me.

"Fuck," He cursed beneath his breath. "We have to stop before I get too carried away." He told me, yet continued to kiss down towards my collarbone.

My other hand brushed against his waist, fingertips grazing over the tattooed skin and around to his broad back. His skin was a lot softer than I was expecting, honestly, and it made me want to touch him more. I didn't want to stop.

However, I reluctantly peeled my eyes open and looked up at him as he rose to his full height, staring down at me through hooded eyes. I absentmindedly slid my hand down his back, still a little stuck in a daze from his kiss.

Atlas leaned down, brushing his lips against mine in a last gentle kiss. "Don't try to avoid me again, smalls." He murmured, nipping at my lip before he turned, striding out of the kitchen.

Dumbfounded, I stared after him, brushing my fingers over my swollen mouth.