Building the Tension | ✔ | 18+

Chapter 17 - To All a Good Night

Author's Notes:

The very start of this chapter eludes to some more sexual content, but there's nothing explicit.

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My pulse was pounding in my ears, not from fear, but from desire. I heard a sound that might've been knocking, but I didn't understand where it was coming from. I wedged the chair up against the storage room door, then leaned in and kissed Dimitri again as he pulled off my shirt. He had 'accidentally' caressed me through my clothes during practice one too many times, and neither of us could take it anymore. As he slid his hand down the front of my pants, I said to him, "I love you so m- where the fuck is that knocking coming from?"

The knocking finally woke me - I had been dreaming. After a week of sleeping on Christian's floor, this was my first night back in my own room, in my own bed. I grumbled, but got up and answered the door. I was still aroused from the dream - more aroused than I ought to be for answering the door without knowing who was on the other side, but I knew the knocking had gone on for a while already. Many of my dreams in the past week had been similar. Lucky for me, Christian hadn't noticed any evidence of it yet.

I quickly eyed what I was wearing - a long t-shirt that came down to mid-thigh, but I was fully covered - before opening the door. "Dimitri," I said, smiling and hoping my arousal wasn't too visible on my face and body, "You came."

He walked into my room, closing the door behind him, then brought his hand up to brush the hair away from the side of my face and kissed me gently. "Of course I did," he said, "Happy birthday, Roza."

"Thank you. I was dreaming of you," I said, "We were in the storage room."

He asked, "Have you been sleeping better lately? Not sleeping with the necklace on?"

"Yes, actually. I took it off," I replied, "It's over on the desk."

"Roza, I want to be with you again. I know that you want me to, but first, I need to do something," he said.

I asked, "What do you need to do?"

"I need to convince you that the necklace is not what you think it is."

"I'm confused, Dimitri," I said, "What do you mean?"

"Look at me," he said, "How do you feel about me right now?"

"I love you," I replied, "More than anything. More than I love Lissa."

"And how do you feel about Adrian?" he continued.

"That's complicated," I answered, trying to be honest, "I think I might have some feelings for him, but they're nothing compared to what I feel for you. He's a good friend who has been really sweet to me. He really cares about me and has taken good care of me - that means a lot."

"But do you love him? Maybe a little bit?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Not even a little bit. Not yet."

"Now, remember the answers you just gave me and go pick up the necklace and hold it in your hand," Dimitri directed. I walked over and picked it up. "Count to sixty," he said. I did as he asked.

He asked again, "How do you feel about me now? Be as honest as you can."

"I'm not sure. I'm so attracted to you that I can't stand it, and I desperately want to have sex with you, but I feel like my feelings I thought I had for you were a mistake. And I feel like maybe you were just taking advantage - using me for my body."

"And Adrian?"

"Honestly? I'm starting to have some pretty intense feelings for him. I really want to have sex with him, too," I replied. Dimitri scowled deeply at that last part. "What? Who I choose to have sex with is none of your business. Besides, even if I wanted to have sex with him, you had your chance with me first. And even if I want to have sex with him now, it's more my brain than my body that wants him." I put my free hand on Dimitri's chest. "My body mostly just wants you."