The First Night – Claimed by Fire

"I'm choosing," she whispered again, her eyes shimmering in the low light of his apartment. "You."

Hunter didn't move at first.

His hands trembled where they held her face, the pulse in his neck visible, thudding. "Say it again," he rasped.

"I'm choosing you, Hunter," Eden said, voice steadier now. "Not because I'm broken. Not because I'm scared. Because I want you to be the one. You're already the one."

A thousand emotions warred in his eyes-rage, tenderness, guilt, lust-but when she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his, everything else fell away.

And all that remained was them.

He kissed her slowly, reverently.

Not the way he'd kissed her in the library. Not the way he'd kissed her to tease or to train.

This kiss said I'm here.

It said you're safe now.

It said I want all of you-not just your body, but every thought you've ever been too afraid to say.

He lifted her carefully into his arms and walked her to his bed like she was made of glass. Set her down like she was precious.

Then stepped back.

"You're sure?"

Eden nodded.

But that wasn't enough for him.

"I need to hear you say it. Not because I want permission... but because I need to deserve it."

She looked up at him.

"I'm sure. I've never been more sure of anything."

Hunter let out a breath that sounded like it carried years of ache.

Then, slowly, he peeled his sweatshirt off her shoulders.

Underneath, she was bare.

Her shirt had been torn earlier during the struggle. There was a rip across her side, and she was trembling slightly-not from pain, but from anticipation.

He noticed the bruise starting to form on her arm.

His fingers touched it gently.

"Did they hurt you?"

"No," she whispered. "You stopped them before they could."

"Still... I want to erase this."

He kissed it.

Softly.

Again.

Again.

And then lower.

Trailing kisses down her arm, across her collarbone, between the curves of her breasts. She arched into him, her skin coming alive under the slow heat of his lips.

Hunter pushed the covers back and crawled onto the bed beside her, still fully clothed.

He didn't undress immediately.

Instead, he worshipped.

Hands tracing the shape of her ribcage.

Lips pressing against the softness of her stomach.

His voice a low murmur against her skin. "I've wanted to ruin you for so long... but now all I want is to keep you."

She gasped as his hand skimmed over her hip, teasing the edge of her panties.

The same black lace he'd picked earlier.

He tugged gently, sliding them down her thighs. "You wore this for him," he murmured.

"I wore it for you," she corrected.

He froze.

Then smiled-crooked and full of pain and pride.

She reached for him, touching the hem of his shirt.

"Your turn."

He stripped.

Slowly.

The shirt first-revealing lean muscle, tight abs, and scars she wanted to kiss later.

Then his jeans.

And when he slid his boxers down, she inhaled sharply.

He was big.

Hard.

And beautiful.

Hunter noticed her wide eyes and leaned in. "Scared?"

She bit her lip. "Only excited."

He groaned. "God, you're going to destroy me."

He laid beside her, pulling her into his arms, bare skin against bare skin. Every place they touched ignited.

Eden looked up at him. "Will it hurt?"

"A little," he admitted. "But I'll make it worth it. I'll go slow. You tell me to stop, I stop."

She nodded.

And then, he kissed her again-this time deeper, longer, needier.

Her hands wandered down his back, nails digging in as his body pressed over hers.

He slid a knee between her legs, coaxing them apart. His fingers trailed down her stomach and found her wet-ready, pulsing, needy.

"You're perfect," he whispered.

He dipped one finger inside her slowly.

She gasped.

Then moaned.

"You're so tight, baby. So fucking sweet."

He added a second, curling them inside her until her eyes rolled back.

She cried out, hips bucking, breath shaking.

"Is this okay?" he asked, voice rough with restraint.

"Yes... yes, please don't stop..."

But he did.

Only to shift himself between her legs, guiding his cock to her entrance.

Her body trembled.

Hunter pressed his forehead to hers. "This is going to feel big at first. I'll go slow. Tell me if it's too much."

She nodded, clutching his shoulders.

And then-he pushed in.

Just the tip.

Her mouth parted in surprise.

He held still.

"Okay?"

She whimpered, "More..."

He pushed further.

Inch by slow inch.

Stretching her.

Claiming her.

And then-he was fully inside.

She gasped.

Tears prickled her eyes, but not from pain.

From how full she felt.

How right it felt.

Hunter stayed still, breathing hard, letting her adjust.

"You feel so good," he whispered. "So damn good around me."

When she nodded, he started to move-slow, deep strokes that drove her mad.

Every thrust brought her closer to something new.

Something overwhelming.

Something blissful.

He kissed her lips.

Her cheeks.

Her throat.

"Let go for me," he said. "I want to feel you come while I'm inside you."

She cried out.

Her body clenched.

She shattered.

And he followed-groaning into her neck as he spilled inside.

For a long time, they didn't move.

Just held each other.

He brushed her hair back, kissed her forehead, whispered her name like it was sacred.

"I've never loved anyone," he said quietly.

"But I think I'm falling."

Eden smiled, tears slipping free.

"Fall, Hunter," she whispered. "I'll catch you."

Desire ignited. Trust Tested. Secrets Near the Surface.

Hunter hadn't meant to lose control.

Not with her.

Not like this.

But the second Eden whispered, "I want you," something dark and dangerous snapped loose inside him. The rules he'd set-the line he'd drawn between training and taking-blurred into dust.

She wanted him.

Not the man she thought she was training for.

Not some imaginary boy she dreamed about in the dark.

Him.

His name on her tongue had almost broken him. Almost.

If she had said it-if she'd whispered "Hunter" at that moment-he might have taken her right there against the library wall, contract or not, innocence be damned.

But she didn't.

Not yet.

And that tiny thread of hesitation, that one sliver of control he still had left, was the only thing keeping him from destroying her with the weight of what he truly felt.

Because Hunter Grayson wasn't just teaching her how to seduce someone else.

He was falling for her.

Hard.

Dangerously hard.

And she had no idea.

Eden couldn't sleep.

Not after what happened in the library.

Not after the way he touched her... and stopped.

Not after the way his mouth had claimed hers like he was drowning and she was the only breath he trusted.

She lay in bed, her fingers clutching the edge of her sheets, her thighs pressed together in silent torture. Every nerve in her body ached with the memory of his hands. The echo of his words.

"I want your first orgasm to be when you scream my name."

Her body shivered again at the thought.

But even more than the lust, something else haunted her.

The way his voice broke when she said she didn't want the other guy anymore.

The way his hands trembled when she said she wanted him.

Was it possible?

Could he be feeling what she was feeling?

She closed her eyes, picturing his face.

There was still so much she didn't understand. Why he was doing this. Why her. Why now.

But she knew one thing with bone-deep certainty

If this was a game...

She didn't want to play with anyone else but him.

The next morning, he wasn't in class

Eden stirred slowly, her lashes fluttering as the sunlight painted golden streaks across the bedsheets.

For a moment, she didn't move.

She just listened.

To the sound of steady breathing beside her.

To the weight of an arm still slung possessively over her waist.

To her heart, still pounding like it had the night before-like it hadn't stopped since his hands claimed her.

She turned her head slightly.

And there he was.

Hunter.

Lying next to her, shirtless, his skin warm and golden in the morning light, one hand tangled in her hair as if even in sleep, he refused to let her go.

He looked peaceful.

Dangerously beautiful.

And all hers.

At least, for now.

His voice was thick with sleep when he spoke.

"You're staring."

Her breath caught. "You were awake?"

"Woke up the second your thighs shifted over mine." His lips curved, lazy and smug. "You're not exactly subtle, baby."

Eden flushed. "Sorry..."

Hunter opened one eye. "Don't you dare apologize for last night."

She swallowed. "You... liked it?"

He rolled toward her, pinning her beneath his body, arms caging her in.

His lips brushed her collarbone. "I liked the way you moaned my name."

Her pulse skipped.

"I liked the way you gave in to me. Completely. No fear. No shame."

His mouth moved lower, lips pressing a kiss to the curve of her breast.

"But what I liked most..." he murmured, "...was that you didn't fake a single thing."

Eden smiled softly. "How do you know I didn't?"

Hunter's voice turned rough. "Because if you had, you'd be able to look me in the eyes right now."

She buried her face in his neck.

He laughed quietly and kissed her forehead.

"I want you to know something," he said after a pause. "Last night... it wasn't just sex for me."

Eden's heart flipped. "What was it, then?"

Hunter looked down at her for a long moment.

His voice dropped to a whisper. "It was the first time I felt like I could... lose control. And be okay with it."

Her fingers curled around his forearm. "You don't always have to be in control."

His jaw clenched. "But I've never had anything worth losing before."

---

Later, she stood in front of the mirror, wrapped in only one of his oversized shirts.

He came up behind her, hands sliding around her waist.

"Where are you going?" he murmured against her neck.

"Back to my place. Just for a few hours. I need to... think."

His arms tightened. "About what?"

Eden hesitated.

But then she reached into her bag and pulled out something.

Two small panties. One white. One black.

She held them up with trembling fingers.

"I have to meet Liam today," she whispered. "And I don't know what to wear."

Hunter's entire body turned to stone.

"What?"

Eden blinked. "I just need closure. I need to see him... and know that I don't want him anymore."

Hunter stared at the two pieces of fabric in her hands.

White. Innocent.

Black. Bold.

His throat worked. His fists clenched. And in his mind, all he could think was:

Don't get hard. Don't get hard in front of her.

But it was too late.

She caught the way his eyes darkened. The way his breath hitched.

He stepped forward slowly and took the black one from her hand.

"If you're going to meet the boy you once loved," he said, voice low and lethal, "at least don't let him think you're still sweet."

Her lips parted. "Hunter-"

He cupped her chin.

"Go meet him. But don't forget..." His thumb brushed her lower lip. "Your body already belongs to me."

And then he left.

Leaving her trembling.

And utterly wrecked.