Royal Secrets (Shhhh)

Chapter 18. ~Caged In His Fire~

Vote, Comment & Follow !!!

At Morning

The first light of dawn spilled gently into the room as Dhara's eyes fluttered open. It was half past five. The stillness of the morning wrapped around her like a soft whisper, and the very first thing her gaze sought was him-Samar.

He lay beside her, lost in slumber, untouched by the chaos of the world. His chest rose and fell in a calm rhythm, his face serene, almost vulnerable. Dhara shifted closer, careful not to stir the silence. His warm breath caressed her skin, ghosting over her lips, igniting a longing she had buried deep inside.

Her fingers twitched with the urge to run through the silken strands of his hair, and her lips ached with a desire to press softly against his. But, like always, reality was a cruel reminder-some dreams were never meant to be lived.

"Hukum... I love you," she whispered into the void between them, her voice so tender it almost broke. A fragile smile curved her lips, laced with sorrow that shimmered in her unshed tears.

She blinked them away slowly, quietly. Without waking him, she drew the black duvet around her bare chest like a cloak of silence. Before leaving, her fingers reached instinctively toward his feet-an old, unspoken ritual of reverence.

With that one final touch, she gathered her scattered clothes from the floor, and like a shadow before sunrise, slipped out of the room-carrying her unrequited love in silence, as always.

●□●■●□●

In the Washroom

Dhara stood before the mirror, a towel draped loosely around her frame. Droplets of water slid down her skin, catching the soft light. She stared at her reflection-not just at her face, but at the woman she had become. The face staring back at her was different. Sculpted. Altered. The scars of her past were gone, buried beneath the precision of a surgeon's hand.

But as her eyes wandered lower, she saw a new story written across her skin. Faint bruises, bite marks, and love-sick trails-each one a possession, a reminder. Samar had claimed her, not with tenderness, but with a touch so intense it had etched itself deep into her being.

Her fingers traced the side of her neck, where his lips had lingered the longest. And with that touch, his voice returned to her-low, raw, unforgettable.

His touch lingered like a silent signature across her skin. Each mark a quiet claim, a reminder.

Dhara's fingers slowly rose to her lips, tracing the place where his lips had lingered the night before. And with that simple gesture, his voice echoed through her memory.

Samar had touched her with a hunger that left her shaken. Not with gentleness, but with a force that claimed, marked, branded. And she had let him. Welcomed it. Needed it.

And with that simple touch, his voice rose from the depths of her mind-low, rough, and unforgettable.

"But those wounds looked better on you. Even though the surgery erased the scars, no one can ever erase my touch. It will always be here, reminding you-your beauty belongs to me. Before the surgery, and after... you are mine."

A small, wistful smile tugged at her lips. "Thank you,"she murmured to no one but her own reflection.

Another memory followed, softer, more possessive.

"I want you just like you were before. I don't want this surgery to take away what we had. Don't forget me... don't forget how I touched you. Don't forget how I made you feel."