Until You (Off-Limits)

I wake up in Gray’s arms, our legs tangled together, my head on his chest. I blink, last night coming back to me. My heart constricts painfully, and I turn in Gray’s arms to look at him.

He’s still fast asleep, his arms wrapped around me. His lashes flutter ever so slightly, as though he might be dreaming. I’m scared to move, scared that I might wake him. I want to stay the way we are, just a little longer. Moments like these are mine to keep.

I carefully place my hand on his bare chest, wanting to be closer to him than I already am. I can’t imagine how bad his heart is aching, how much further it’ll break when I tell him what I must.

He’s been taking such good care of me. Every single night he checks all the locks with me, and he’s taken to putting me to bed, just because he worries about my nightmares.

He’s lying right here with me, yet it feels like I’ve already lost him. I didn’t even realize how much he’s come to mean to me. When did this happen? When did I stop thinking about Brad? When did Gray start to occupy my thoughts?

It isn’t just Gray, either. Ash means more to me than I dare admit. The playfulness between us… it made me feel like a normal person. To Ash I was someone amazing, the founder of a platform he loves, a mysterious woman. I can’t ever live up to the image Gray must have of Nyx.

Being Nyx allows me to be everything I’m not in real life. I get to be strong, fearless, mysterious, and even, admittedly, intelligent. That’s not an image I can uphold in front of Gray, who’s seen me get cheated on and struggling to find an entry-level job.

My heart twists painfully as I imagine the disappointment I’ll find in his eyes when I tell him the truth, but it doesn’t compare to the pain I feel at the thought of losing both Ash and Gray.

He tenses underneath me, and his grip on me tightens. “Aria,” he whispers, still half asleep. He pulls me closer, and my heart skips a beat. There’s something so sexy about him whispering my name like that.

His hands run over my body, one hand settling on my ass while the other wraps around my thigh. He pulls me closer, shifting me on top of him so that my leg is hooked around his hip.

I suppress a moan when I feel how hard he is underneath me. He pushes his hips up slightly, moving against me in the best way, and a small whimper escapes my lips.

I try to pull away so I can slip out of his bed, but his grip on me tightens. He tenses, his lashes fluttering. “Don’t go, babe,” he murmurs, his voice groggy. “Let me hold you, just like this.”

I relax into his arms even as my heart rate skyrockets. He must still be half asleep, but I don’t care. I’m knowingly fooling myself, but I don’t care. All I care about is that Gray wants me in his arms, and while I still can, I’m going to relish in this moment.

I hook my leg up higher, wanting him even closer, and he moans. He grabs my waist and turns us both over. I swallow hard when his eyes find mine. I expected to find grogginess, and maybe even confusion, but what I’m seeing is pure lust.

He lowers his face to mine, and for a second I think he might kiss me, but then he turns his face to the side, his lips brushing against my neck. He leans in further, pressing a kiss to my throat, and a soft moan escapes my lips.

I want him closer. I want my hands in his hair and his lips on mine. But before I can do something we’d both regret, he pushes away from me. He rolls onto his back and stares up at the ceiling for a second before rising from his bed. I swallow hard at the sight of his clearly outlined erection. Feeling it was one thing, but seeing it is something else entirely. He’s big.

Gray walks to his bathroom, and I sit up, flustered. He pauses in the middle of the room, turning just enough to look at me. The way he smiles puts me at ease, and I relax back into his pillows.

“How about I make you omelets for breakfast?” he asks, grinning. “I’ve been perfecting my recipe for a while now.”

I nod, unable to keep the smile off my face. This happiness… I’ll hold on to it just a little longer. Just a few more days. I want a few more days of Gray looking at me like that; his eyes filled with affection.

I don’t know how he’ll respond if he finds out who I am, and for now, I don’t even want to think about it. Besides, he’s got more than enough going on already. A few more days… that’s all I’ll take.