--: Keifer's POV: --
The heavy mahogany doors of the dining hall finally creaked shut behind the last of the rowdy Section E members. The silence that followed was thick, almost heavy, broken only by the distant, rhythmic pulse of the ocean waves hitting the shore. The afternoon heat was a physical weight now, the kind of tropical humidity that turned the air into a shimmering haze.
I leaned back in my chair, exhaling a breath that felt like it had been trapped in my lungs since we first opened the cottage door. My body was still humming—a frantic, underlying vibration of adrenaline and the lingering ghost of Jay-Jay's touch.
I looked at her. She was slumped slightly in her chair, her fingers tracing the rim of her water glass, her eyes wide and staring at nothing. She looked absolutely drained, her cheeks still stained with that beautiful, persistent rose-pink blush.
"Three hours," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the hum of the mansion's AC. "We actually have three hours of peace."
I stood up, my chair scraping loudly against the marble floor. I walked around the table, stopping behind her. I didn't care if aneone from Section E saw us. I didn't care if Aries or the rest of the guys were watching from the terrace as we left. We weren't doing anything wrong; we were just going back to our room.
I leaned down, my hands resting on her shoulders, feeling the tension knotted in her muscles.
"Three hours of peace," I murmured, my lips grazing the shell of her ear. "But I have a better idea than sitting here staring at empty pasta bowls."
--: Jay-Jay's POV: --
I looked up at him, my neck craning back. The way the sunlight filtered through the high windows caught the golden flecks in his eyes, making them look almost amber. "What are we going to do? If I stay here, I think I'm going to vibrate out of my skin from the anxiety."
A mysterious, slow-burning smile began to spread across Keifer's face. It wasn't his usual stoic look—it was darker, more intense, and incredibly intoxicating. It was the smile of a man who knew exactly what he wanted and finally had the space to take it.
And I knew what he was thinking
"I think," he rasped, his thumbs tracing the line of my collarbone, "we should continue exactly what we were doing before we were so rudely interrupted. Don't you think we have some... unfinished business?"
My heart did a violent somersault. The heat that had finally started to settle in my veins flared up again, hotter than the sun outside.
"Now?" I breathed.
"Now," he confirmed.
He reached down and took my hand, pulling me up from the chair. We walked out of the mansion through the main entrance, stepping out into the blinding afternoon light. We didn't try to hide or sneak through the shadows. We walked across the sand toward our cottage in plain sight. If Ci-N was watching from a window or if Aries was glaring from the balcony, let them.
--: Keifer's POV: --
The second the cottage door clicked shut behind us and the lock turned, the world outside ceased to exist.
I didn't give her a chance to speak. I didn't give her a second to catch her breath. I spun her around, pinning her back against the cool wood of the door, and crashed my lips against hers.
It wasn't a gentle kiss. It was a collision. It was months of repressed longing and the frustration of the last two hours exploding all at once. My hands found her waist, pulling her flush against me until there wasn't a single atom of air between us.
--: Jay-Jay's POV: --
The kiss was everything. It was long, deep, and so intense I felt the world tilt on its axis. His tongue tangled with mine, a frantic, hungry dance that made my knees go weak. I wrapped my arms around his neck, my fingers digging into his hair, pulling him closer as if I could merge our souls right there against the door.
Every time I thought the kiss was reaching its end, he would moan into my mouth and deepen it, his hands roaming over my back, tracing the curve of my spine with a desperate, possessive heat. I was drowning in him—in the scent of his skin, the taste of him, the sheer power of his grip. My heart was thundering so hard I could feel it in my throat.
He pulled back just an inch, his forehead resting against mine, both of us gasping for air like we'd been underwater for miles. His eyes were dark, blown out with a desire so raw it made me tremble.
"God, Jay... I've been wanting to do that since the second Thyme started screaming at the door," he rasped, his voice a jagged, beautiful wreck.
He leaned back in, catching my lower lip between his teeth, sending a jolt of pure electricity straight to my core. The kiss started again, slower this time, more agonizing, as if he wanted to memorize the texture of my lips before we lost ourselves again.
--: Keifer's POV: --
I wanted her. Every fiber of my being was screaming at me to throw her back onto that bed and finish what she started until neither of us could remember our own names. My blood was a raging river. But as I kissed her—as I felt the frantic, panicked way her heart was thudding against my chest—a sliver of my brain finally rebooted.
The image of Aries and the others bursting in earlier flashed through my mind. I couldn't do that to her again today.
Or maybe, atleast right now.
I pulled back, my hands framing her face, my thumbs stroking her flushed, damp cheeks. I looked at her—her hair a mess, her lips swollen from my kisses, her eyes hazy with love.
"Jay," I whispered, my voice thick. "As much as I want to continue... if someone knocks on that door again right now, I think I might actually lose my mind. I'm not ready for another 'Great Escape' before the sun even goes down."
Jay-Jay leaned her head back against the door, her eyes closing as she tried to catch her breath. "You're right. My heart can't take it. If Ci-N so much as whispers through a crack in the wall, I'm going to have a breakdown."
I let out a shaky laugh, leaning my head against the door next to hers. "Let's just... let's take that nap. A real one. Two or three hours of just holding you without worrying about who's listening at the keyhole."
"Three hours," she corrected, finally opening her eyes and giving me a small, tired, but incredibly happy smile. "I want to sleep until the sun is completely gone."
--: Jay-Jay's POV: --
Keifer didn't let go of my hand as he led me to the bed. We didn't bother undressing this time; we just collapsed onto the duvet, the cool air from the AC finally winning the battle against the afternoon heat.
He pulled me back against his chest, his large frame acting like a shield against the rest of the world. His arm draped over my waist, pulling me tight, his chin resting on the top of my head.
"Sleep, baby" he murmured, his voice dropping into a low, soothing hum that vibrated through my back. "I've got the door locked. No one's getting in."
"I love you, Keifer," I whispered, the words feeling like the only truth in the world.
"I love you more than you know, I love you until scientists find the end of the universe" he replied, his grip tightening just a fraction.
--: Keifer's POV: --
I held her close, the scent of her hair—a mix of ocean salt and that sweet, floral shampoo—filling my senses. But even as the cool air of the cottage settled over us, the fire in my blood hadn't fully cooled. It was just simmering now, waiting for the right moment to boil over again.
I felt her relax against me, her breathing finally starting to even out, but I couldn't let her go to sleep without a fair warning. I leaned down, my lips grazing the sensitive skin of her temple.
"Jay?" I murmured, my voice vibrating with a low, dark promise.
"Hmm?" she responded, her voice thick with the beginnings of sleep.
"Don't get too comfortable thinking I've suddenly become a saint again," I rasped, my hand sliding down to rest firmly on her hip, pulling her back flush against me. "I'm only stopping because I don't want to be interrupted by a stampede of idiots. I'm just waiting until I know for a fact that no one—not Ci-N, not Thyme, and especially not Aries—is going to knock on that door."
--: Jay-Jay's POV: --
The sleepiness that had been clouding my brain cleared instantly. I felt the heat of his palm through my dress, and the way his voice dropped an octave sent a fresh wave of goosebumps down my arms. I turned slightly in his arms, looking up at him through my lashes.
"And when exactly do you think that's going to happen?" I challenged softly, a playful but nervous flutter in my chest. "In case you haven't noticed, Section E doesn't exactly have a curfew."
Keifer's eyes darkened, that mysterious, predatory smile returning to his lips. He leaned in until our noses brushed, his gaze locked onto mine with an intensity that made it hard to breathe.
"At night, of course," he said, his voice a low, gravelly hum. "Do you really think I'm going to stay for long without being inside you? Especially after that interruption? My 'little one' has a very long memory, Jay. And he's not a fan of being left hanging."
I felt my face heat up to a degree I didn't think was physically possible. I hid my face in his chest, my hands clutching the fabric of his shirt. "Keifer! You're... you're shameless!"
"Only with you, baby" he chuckled, the sound deep and grounding. He kissed the top of my head and pulled the duvet up over our shoulders. "Now, sleep. You're going to need the energy for later."
--: Keifer's POV: --
I closed my eyes, resting my chin on her head. The cottage was quiet, the only sound the hum of the AC and the distant roar of the surf. For three hours, the world belonged to us. No games, no teasing, no masks. Just the steady beat of two hearts finally finding their rhythm.
I held her tight, a silent vow echoing in my mind. Tonight, there would be no interruptions.