Fall For You ~ Hearts Intertwined Book One

Chapter Twenty-Two

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Recap;

I just admitted I like both Caiden and Holten, I don't know who I want.

I know who I should want and only want, Holten.

But when I heard Caidens voice through the phone, my gut twisted and my heart started to go haywire.

I push my thoughts to the side, grab my clothes and walk down the attic staircase to the bathroom right beside the staircase leading down into the basement, I ignore those steps and walk into the bathroom with my mind and heart racing over time again.

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Chapter Twenty-Two

I made sure to only take a quick shower, washing my hair and body swiftly, trying to ignore the overwhelming anxiety I was feeling as I dry my damp hair and clutch my phone in my hand.

I glance at the mirror briefly, turning around and exiting the bathroom, not hesitating as I walk down the steps and into the basement.

I walk down and looking around I notice this is just like a house, or more like a mini house. To the right of the room, there is a small light wooden table with two wooden chairs sitting around, along with everything for a kitchen, and to the left a small living room and gaming setup with a large flatscreen tv on the wall.

I pull out my phone.

To Caiden;

I'm here, where are you?

I sigh and look around only to glance back down at my phone upon getting an instant reply from Caiden.

From Caiden;

Go down the second set of stairs, I'll explain when you get here.

I put my phone in my shorts pocket and turn to the right, there is a second set of basement stairs, but instead, this one is a level below the basement with a single door at the bottom of the stairs.

If I was a complete stranger to Caiden, I would be freaking out wondering if this was his tactic as a serial killer to lure me down here, to kill me.

I walk down the steps, each one eerily silent, not a creak to be heard from the wooden boards as I walk down. I reach the bottom and turn the doorknob and push.

I am met with a grey and white-walled room, with a small bookshelf to the left of the room, a small reclining chair and a queen sized matress sat in the middle of the floor, on the floor with Caiden sitting up against the wall on the bed.

"What is this room, actually what is the basement?" I ask, closing the door behind me and going to walk to the reclining chair.

"The basement was just a regular basement but when Marley and I met, I bought this cabin for us to share instead of having to go back to and from our houses, but we quickly realized our personalities were very different when it came to the company we kept. She likes to party hard and listen to crazy music all hours of the night and early morning, but I am a quiet guy. I like my video games, my time to think or relax with some low music. We made this pact after our very significant first fight. About her drinking." Caiden says rather vaguely I might say.

I ignore my quickening breaths as Caidens eyes met my own and I sucked in an unexpected breath that made my heart stutter and still for a split second in my chest.

It felt like an eternity since I laid my eyes on him again, but really it was less than a day ago.

"So how does that fit into your fighting now, did you sleep here last night?" I ask, gulping down the intensifying butterflies swarming in my stomach, trying to concentrate on the reason I came down here to begin with.

"Yeah, I went to the bathroom and came back to see Marley dancing with her top off, swinging it around, she had on a thin strapless bra and even that was barely hanging on to her...She did this while everyone else cheered. I mean it is our celebration before we tie the knot, but once we get married, does she think she can just freely throw around her clothes carelessly in front of our friends? It was crazy Ravenylyn, I got so mad, waited for her to come down and then dragged her to a room asking why she did that." Caiden rushes out, lifting up his hands to run them through his hair and drag down his face in clear distress.

"What did she say?" I ask, almost fully invested in wanting to know.

I was concerned for Marley, why did she do this? I know she is wild when she gets to a certain point, but why go so far as to almost strip in front of not only your friends, but your fiance's friends to parade and dance about?

'Marls!' I silently tsk at my friend and glance up at the ceiling almost as if I could throw enough disapproval in my voice, she'll hear it.

"She was dared to," Caiden says in a matter-of-fact tone, throwing up his hands in exasperation before resting them in his lap, "I can understand, adult truth or dare is a lot more fun with drinks, but you're supposed to only do strip truth or dare with your closest friends that you've known for a long time." Caiden says, pain lacing his words and irritation at the situation tugging onto his face, making it taunt with stress.

Caiden's blonde hair was tousled about, his light blue eyes shining with inner torment that spoke to my heart, it seized and almost crumbled in my chest by how bothered he was by this.

"I am sorry I wasn't there Caiden, I'm sorry Marley did all that, she is normally more careful than that, we still have yet to talk, it's only been a couple of days since arriving," I say, nonchalantly even though I struggled to intake oxygen through my lungs.

"Speaking of, where were you when all of this was going down? You were missing and so was a guy...Holten, I believe his name was." Caidens light eyes turn a couple of shades darker, his jaw is more tightly taunt now, his muscles set.

Caiden's voice had changed to a few octaves lower than normal, and I could hear it plain as day in his voice.

He was jealous.

His usually light blue sky eyes turned a shade darker, to a stormy blue swimming with jealousy and a tinge of possessiveness. The aura leaking from him changed instantly from a light and open one, to a warmth reeking of sex and dominance as his nose flared.

"Yes, I was with him." I say, getting up out of the chair.

My eyes widen fractions as Caiden too stands up and moves around the bed on the floor.

"Why? Do you like him?" Caiden asks out, his voice laced with jealousy, hurt and desire.

Caiden's eyes held me in place, not able to take a step forward or backward as Caiden crosses the room and the distance between us within a second to grip the side of my face, angling my face up, and gripping my hip tightly with his other hand.

"I do." I whisper out, my breathing has gone rapid now.

My chest heaves with the effort to keep breathing, I should have been writhing on the floor without Samson here, but for some reason even though it felt as if I have gone into a panic attack, I pushed through and felt a burning sensation trickle down my body and settle in my core.

"Do you like me?" Caiden whispers out, his voice dark and slick with syrup-like honey, pure desire dripping from his words.

Caiden leans forward to just barely trace his lips with my own, in a feather-like kiss, tipping me beyond control as my hands wound around the back of his neck.

"Yes." I say.

"That's all I needed to know." Caiden says, sealing our lips in a kiss I didn't know I had been burning for, wanting so badly to feel his soft luscious lips against my own, to feel his warm but tight-muscled arms wound around me again.

I didn't realize just how much I had missed being in Caiden's arms until I was in them again.

I thought I was set, I thought I was going to hold firm, but something sizzled in the air between us, it crackled and burned me until Caiden came to me and kissed away the burning, he put out the fire that had suddenly consumed my body, making an even bigger mess inside my heart and brain.