41

~Darlina's POV~

My eyes widened as I looked in the mirror the next morning, fresh out of the shower. I wasn't sure whether to be angry or embarrassed because there, on my neck right below my ear, was a hickey. Atlas had left a mark on my skin last night.

I huffed, leaning closer towards the mirror as I inspected the purple bruise. As much as I was unsure exactly how to feel, some part of me felt a little bit...thrilled at the sight of it. Was that weird? And had he left the mark there on purpose?

Shaking my head, I left the bathroom and got dressed in a pair of cream colored shorts and a cropped, light pink tank top with a light brown knit cardigan that was incredibly soft. I grabbed my makeup bag and returned to the bathroom, staring in the mirror as I applied a bit of concealer over the hickey to cover it up. There was no way I could just walk around with this showing, especially in front of Emmett. I'd have to explain myself because he'd definitely ask questions.

Thankfully, my concealer managed to cover it up and I put away my makeup bag after I finished applying the rest to my face, going through my usual routine. I exited my room and wandered into the living area, where I found both Emmett and Atlas sitting on the couch together.

"There you are. You sure got up late today." Emmett remarked as I entered the room, and I gave a sheepish smile. "Ah, yeah. I had a hard time sleeping last night, I guess." I said, which wasn't actually a lie. However, Atlas was at fault for why I couldn't sleep. All I could do when I got back to my room was repeat the kiss over and over in my head, tossing and turning while trying to fall asleep. That had been my first kiss.

Flicking my gaze over to Atlas, I felt my heart skip a beat when I noticed that he was already looking at me. My face warmed and I found myself happy that I had put on makeup, as it was hiding the color staining my cheeks.

"Well that sucks." Emmett frowned in response to my words, but I just gave a small smile and a shrug of my shoulders. "It's not so bad." I said, finally looking away from Atlas.

Em smiled and rose up from his spot on the couch. "Are you ready to go?" He asked, cocking up an eyebrow curiously. I nodded and he nudged Atlas with his foot as a way of silently telling him to get up, which the large man reluctantly did. "Yep." I affirmed softly, following after him as he headed towards the front door. "Are we still going to the movies?" I wondered. Last night, Em had made plans with us to go see a movie today, though I couldn't remember which one he'd said he wanted to see.

"Duh. Now, come on." He responded, swinging open the front door and holding it open for me to exit first. I left the cabin with Emmett and Atlas trailing after me, Atlas and I waiting by the car while Emmett locked the door.

I peeked over at Atlas as we stood beside one another, fiddling with my fingers. He leaned against the car door, crossing his arms over his chest as he locked his gaze on mine. "Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked quietly, the shyness I was feeling due to his gaze evident in my voice. With a shrug, he glanced in Emmett's direction before he spoke, perhaps deciding that we were far enough away that he wouldn't hear anything.

"Because I thought kissing you last night would've satiated me at least a little, but I find myself wanting more still." He told me in a low mutter, allowing his gaze to linger on my lips.

Not expecting him to say that so suddenly, I bit the inside of my cheek, curling my fingers around the soft sleeves of my cardigan. I hadn't expected him to be the type that was so upfront about that sort of thing, and it flustered me. "What are you saying?" I whispered, trying to brush it off with the assumption that he was perhaps fluffing up his words for my sake.

Atlas cocked up an eyebrow. "I'm only being honest, Darlina." He said simply, the conversation falling to an unfortunate end as Emmett approached us with a giant smile on his lips. He unlocked his truck and Atlas climbed into the backseat with me, my eyes widening when I felt his hand brush against my thighs as he sat beside me and buckled his seatbelt. We were close, and the way he spread his thighs to sit more comfortably only increased our close proximity.

He didn't look at me when I cast him a sidelong glance, staring out the window as Emmett began the drive to the movie theater. It wasn't a long drive, nor was it a long wait before we had our tickets once we arrived at the theater, as there weren't very many people there.

The three of us headed into the theater, and though I still wasn't even sure what movie we were here to watch I sat down anyways. Atlas sat between Emmett and I, causing me to peek towards him continuously as the ads played before the movie started. Even once the ads ended and the lights went out as the movie began, I found it hard to focus on the giant projected screen before me. No, I was too busy thinking about what he had said earlier and about the kiss from last night.

Had he really meant it? I'd never thought Atlas to be the kind to be so blunt when it came to his desires, but perhaps I should've. He was blunt in practically every other way, especially when he was comfortable with the person, which I knew well just from watching him interact with Emmett.

I was still staring up at him absentmindedly when he turned his head, meeting my gaze in the dark theater. The flashing of the pale light from the movie illuminated his handsome face as he focused his eyes on my mouth, that little piercing in his tongue glinting against the light as his tongue swiped across his bottom lip. Neither one of us seemed very interested in the movie, finding one another more attention grabbing.

"You'd better quit looking at me like that unless you want me to kiss you again, right here." He told me in a low murmur, causing my cheeks to flame at his words. Did he not feel embarrassed to say something like that? The man must've been more shameless than I was even aware of.

A tiny part of me wanted to push, to keep looking at him just so he'd keep his word, but the smarter half of my brain won and I looked away to stare at the screen instead. Even so, I still was utterly aware of his presence beside me, the heat of his knee brushing against mine and the gentle skim of his arm touching mine. It was proving to be very difficult to keep myself from looking at him.

Yet somehow, I managed to keep my gaze straight ahead, staring at the screen for the remainder of the movie yet taking in none of it.