Episode 16: Through the Door

The heavy slam of the front hallway bathroom door echoed through the quiet house, followed by the sharp, desperate click of the lock.

I didn't stay sitting at the dining table. I stood up slowly, my bare feet slipping across the hardwood floor without making a single sound. I followed the scent of his cedarwood cologne right to the bathroom door, stopping just an inch from the wood.

I leaned my head gently against the frame, a slow, entirely wicked red-flag smirk spreading across my face.

From the other side of the door, the sound of the sink faucet running on full blast cut through the silence. But it wasn't loud enough to drown out the heavy, ragged gasps escaping Vance’s throat. He was panting. He was completely unraveled.

Then came a low, frustrated groan, followed by the distinct rustle of fabric.

My breath hitched, a violent rush of pure, toxic adrenaline flooding my chest. The green-flag prince—the perfect, disciplined man who was supposed to marry my sister—was currently hiding in a dark bathroom, desperately trying to ease the sudden, raging erection I had just given him.

“Ren... damn it,” Vance muttered under his breath, his voice muffled by the wood, thick with an agonizing mix of intense guilt and sheer, unadulterated lust.

I closed my eyes, my fingers gently tracing the outline of the doorframe. I could picture it perfectly. His broad shoulders hunched over the sink, his knuckles white against the porcelain, his head thrown back as his mind replayed the exact feeling of his fingers gripping my jaw and his lips pressing against the corner of my mouth.

Every ragged breath he took was proof of his defeat. Every low groan was music to my ears.

I thought back to the leather-bound Goal Book hidden beneath my mattress.

Goal Number Two: Make Vance fall for me. (Check.)Goal Number Four: Do 18+ things with Vance.

Listening to the desperate, trembling sounds of the man who belonged to my sister, I realized I was so much closer to that fourth goal than he would ever admit. He could throw all the rules and academic challenges at me he wanted. He could pretend he was just testing me. But his body couldn't lie to me.

I leaned in closer, my lips practically brushing the wood of the door.

"Enjoy your motivation, Vance," I whispered into the quiet hallway, my voice barely a breath. "Because next time... you won't have to hide behind a locked door to get it."

I turned on my heel and glided up the stairs to my bedroom, a soft, victorious laugh bubbling up in my chest.

Day Two was officially over. And the green-flag prince was officially mine.