Chapter 6
“Mia.”
“Yes.”
Her voice cracked as it pushed through her throat. Each time she swallowed dryly from tension, the part of her skin touching Dylan stirred with a shiver. She wanted to avoid speaking if she could, but he continued to call her name, again and again, with no clear purpose.
“Mia.”
“Say what you want to say.”
“Mia Blair.”
Dylan’s long fingers slowly traced the curve of her neck. The movement was uncharacteristically gentle and languid, different from the Dylan she was used to.
He kept repeating her name, as if telling her to remember it clearly. As if telling her to recognize who stood at the center of everything about to happen.
Then, unexpectedly, another name fell from Dylan’s lips.
“Mia Richard.”
Richard?
The sound of that name made Mia turn her head and meet Dylan’s gaze. Their faces were only inches apart.
Even after saying something so shocking, his eyes were as calm as the midnight sea. The only difference was the overwhelming heat behind them.
The intensity of that heat left Mia breathless. A soft exhale escaped from between her lips.
Before she had time to react to how close he had come, his lips were already on hers, silencing everything.
The sensation was dizzying, almost unbearably ticklish.
She had convinced herself it would be fine because she had felt this once before. But that belief dissolved quickly. This time was different. His kiss was slow, unhurried.
His tongue slipped between her parted lips and brushed lazily against her teeth.
The way their tongues tangled felt unfamiliar, but she had no intention of pulling away.
Still, Dylan made no effort to remove the hand resting at the back of her neck.
Instead, he pressed it more firmly, gently stroking her skin as if drawing out a strange, new feeling.
“Ah…”
Mia’s eyelids trembled.
Dylan’s gaze was still steady, unsettling in how calm it remained. Her breath was getting shorter, and under the weight of his stare, Mia finally shut her eyes tightly.
The sensation of their tongues twisting together was unfamiliar.
When she opened her eyes again, the couch she had been sitting on was already far behind her.
As her hands flailed slightly in the air, Dylan carefully pulled her up and onto his shoulder.
“Mia, your hand.”
She was too out of breath to fully process what he was doing.
All she could do was hold onto his solid shoulder, thinking that the feeling of almost falling had lessened just a bit.
She placed her other hand on his shoulder too, the one he hadn’t guided.
Every sound that escaped her lips was swallowed completely by him.
With each shared breath, it felt like her lungs were filling with heat.
A muffled moan caught in her throat.
Even as she gasped from the pressure, Dylan did not stop.
His tongue gently teased her sensitive skin, and in her dazed state, she felt his hand move from her neck down across her back.
Even in moments like this, Dylan was looking at her without blinking.
Mia felt completely overwhelmed by the weight of that gaze.
Please, she wanted to say. Just give me a moment.
“Just close your eyes.”
If only those piercing blue eyes weren’t watching her so closely, it felt like she might finally be able to breathe.
But Dylan kept staring straight at her, and in the end, it was Mia who gave in and shut her eyes first.
Dylan’s lips curved into a faint, satisfied smile, as if her silence and surrender had been exactly what he was waiting for.
He moved slowly, pressing in closer. Mia instinctively stepped back, but there was nowhere left to go.
With each step, she drew nearer until there was no distance between them at all.
Thud.
Her leg bumped into something behind her. Only then did she realize she had reached the edge, and there was no retreat left.
Their lips, which had been joined so tightly, finally parted.
“Hah… hah…”
Their breaths, still hot and uneven, hung between them.
Mia tried to collect herself, but her heart was pounding too hard, her thoughts tangled in the thick silence that followed.
Even in a moment like this, Dylan continued to look at her without closing his eyes.
Mia felt completely overwhelmed by the unbearable sensation. It was as if his gaze alone could trap her.
“Please… ugh. Just close your eyes.”
If those bright blue eyes weren’t staring at her, she felt like she could finally breathe. But he never looked away. In the end, Mia was the one who had to shut her eyes.
Dylan’s lips curved into a faint, satisfied smile as if her silence and surrender pleased him. He moved in slowly, pressing his body against hers and gently pushing her backward.
With nowhere else to go, Mia had no choice but to retreat. She stayed close to him, stepping back with hesitation.
Then, something caught on her leg. The soft thud came just as she realized she could not back away any farther.
Only after reaching the end did their lips, which had been joined without a single gap, finally come apart.
“Hah… hah…”
As she caught her breath, Mia slowly opened her eyes. A thin strand of saliva lingered in the space between them. She noticed his shirt, wrinkled from her grip, and the sheen on his lips, smeared with spit—hers or his, she wasn’t sure.
She could easily imagine she looked just as undone as he did.
For a moment, she stared at him with a dazed expression. Then her body gave in, and she collapsed backward.
It was only after her thoughts cleared a little that Mia realized her body was bare, with only her undergarments remaining.
At the same time, Dylan stopped moving.
He stood there in silence, his cool eyes slowly scanning every part of her exposed body.
“Ah… the scar.”
Her heart dropped in her chest, and all the heat that had fogged her mind vanished in an instant. It was replaced by a cold wave that swept over her from head to toe.
A faint, bitter laugh slipped from her lips as she pulled the blanket over herself. She knew it wouldn’t fully cover her, but at that moment, showing the scar felt more humiliating than being naked.
“Dylan, maybe it has been so long that you forgot how ruined this body is.”
Even as she gasped for air, she forced the words out, steady and clear.
“And now, after seeing me like this, you say we should live like a normal married couple?”
He remained silent, and a faint smile lingered at the corner of his mouth. It was hard to tell if it was from amusement or disbelief.
“The ink isn’t even dry yet. Let’s just pretend this didn’t happen.”
Her fingers tightened around the edge of the blanket. As she carefully lifted her body, Dylan reached out and placed his hand gently on her chest.
“Mia.”
His voice was lower than before, soft but steady.
The thought of giving a clear answer never even crossed her mind. While Mia hesitated, Dylan leaned forward. Without pausing, his hand moved to the clasp of her undergarment. A familiar sound clicked quietly in the air, and in an instant, the pressure around her chest disappeared.
Her breath caught in her throat.
In the well-lit room, nothing was hidden. Mia’s bare skin was exposed without a single shadow to shield her.
“When I start something, I finish it.”
She didn’t know how to respond. Words refused to form.
His long fingers touched her skin, moving slowly from her shoulder down to her chest. They passed lightly over her, brushing a place so delicate it made her stomach tighten. He paused at a small scar left long ago.
Her body flinched.
She hadn’t expected the reaction. The room was warm, yet her skin erupted in goosebumps.
Dylan moved over her, lowering his head until he was close. His mouth met the scar first, not with urgency but with careful, quiet contact. His lips brushed against her skin like the flutter of wings. Sometimes he lingered, his mouth pressing gently. Sometimes he moved away and returned again, leaving a faint trail behind.
It didn’t end quickly. What began as a brief touch continued his presence moved across her skin, down to her waist, until eventually, she felt the heat settle somewhere deeper.
Mia’s thoughts spiraled. Her body felt hot, too hot. Her mind was full of confusion, and a strange sensation rose inside her. She wasn’t sure why, but her stomach churned with unease.
When she finally dared to lower her gaze, she saw it.
There, among the faded scars that reminded her of everything she had endured, he had left traces—marks of his own, as if to claim them.
“Why… like this?”
She whispered the question, more to herself than to him.
Dylan was still there, kneeling between her legs, his eyes focused. At some point, he had removed his own clothes too, though she hadn’t noticed when.
With a dazed expression, Mia parted her lips and called out to him.
“Dylan.”
“Yes.”
His voice was calm, composed. If not for the shine still on his lips, it would have been hard to believe he had just touched every part of her.
He did not meet her eyes. His gaze remained on the final barrier she wore.
“Mia,” he said softly, “did you enjoy it?”
He traced the fabric slowly as he spoke.
She stared at him, her voice almost trembling.
“This is just something you’re doing to get what you want, isn’t it?”
There was no answer.
She could feel the growing discomfort, her body responding even though her mind resisted. Shifting slightly, she tried to ease the sensation. In response, Dylan’s fingers moved again, lightly pressing through the fabric with quiet intention.
“Ah…”
The sensation was foreign. Among everything he had done so far, this was the most unexpected.
She tried to close her legs, but her body didn’t listen.
And still, he watched.
His fingers moved with subtle insistence, sometimes grazing, sometimes pressing gently.
Then, letting out a slow breath, he asked again, his voice calm but expectant, as if hoping for a particular answer.
