Divorce With Benefits: A Second Chance At Love
Chapter 24: Raging Fire Inside

Chapter 24: Raging Fire Inside

With a sharp smack, Jared pulled back just enough to let the cool air steal away the heat. Still, the warmth of his lips still lingered on Jerica’s skin, making her pulse race.

Her lips tingled from the contact, and as she blinked slowly, she couldn’t stop her gaze from drifting back to his mouth, the same mouth that had ignited something deep within her. Her chest rose and fell heavily, her breath shallow as she tried to regain control over the turmoil that had taken root.

But Jared wasn’t finished. Not yet.

His eyes, dark and smoldering with a hunger she hadn’t seen in ages, locked onto hers. The intensity in them sent a wave of heat coursing through her body, making her heart beat faster.

Before she could catch her breath, his mouth crashed down on hers again, but this time with a fierceness that made her knees tremble. His lips moved with a slow, deliberate sensuality that left her reeling. The kiss was no longer soft or tentative; it was commanding, possessive—claiming her in a way that made her body melt into him.

He nibbled on her bottom lip, teasing, coaxing, until she let out a breathy moan. The sound seemed to fuel him, pushing him to deepen the kiss, his tongue slipping past her lips to explore with a raw urgency that made her legs weak. She clung to the file cabinet behind her, her fingers desperately seeking something—anything—for stability as her body betrayed her. Her chest arched involuntarily, pressing her closer to him as his hands moved to grip her waist with a firmness that promised he wasn’t letting go.

Jerica’s mind went blank, every thought consumed by the feel of him. The world outside the records room ceased to exist. His lips were hot, demanding, drawing out every ounce of passion she’d hidden behind her walls. His teeth grazed her lip again, and her breath hitched as she gave in to the whirlwind of sensations. She hadn’t felt this alive in so long, hadn’t felt wanted, needed in this way.

Her body responded on instinct, arching toward him, aching for more. She wanted to lose herself in this kiss, to forget where they were, to forget everything that had gone wrong between them. His hands slid up her sides, sending shivers of pleasure through her, and she almost whimpered when his grip tightened. She wanted more. She needed more.

But just as she surrendered fully to the fire building between them, the buzz of his phone cut through the heated air like a cruel reminder of reality.

He didn’t stop. His lips still lingered on hers, barely touching, his breath warm and tantalizing against her mouth.

Jerica’s eyes fluttered open slowly, and the first thing she saw was the fierce intensity in his gaze. It took everything in her not to grab him by the collar, to pull him closer and continue what they had started. She didn’t care that they were at work. She didn’t care that anyone could walk in, or that the camera might be capturing the moment.

All she cared about was the fire burning deep inside her, the fire that only he could douse.

Her lips parted, her breath ragged, as his mouth hovered just above hers. His breath mingled with hers, a warmth that seeped into her, igniting a deeper flame. Her hands itched to touch him, to pull him against her, to feel the weight of his body pressed against hers.

For a moment, it felt like he might give in too, like he might let go of the phone and finish what they had started. His breath was shallow, uneven, as he hovered there, his lips ghosting over hers in a way that made her body tremble with need. She was on the edge, teetering between desire and restraint, the pulse between them growing unbearable.

But just as quickly as it had begun, he pulled away.

Without a word, Jared stepped back, his expression unreadable. The heat that had burned so fiercely between them seemed to dissipate as he turned, his larger strides carrying him out of the records room before she could even catch her breath.

Jerica watched him leave, her chest heaving as she tried to steady herself, the warmth of his touch still burning on her skin.

Her fingers lingered on her lips, still swollen from the kiss, as the coolness of the room crept back in, doing nothing to quench the fire raging inside her. She was left fanning herself, her body desperate for something more—something that had been cruelly snatched away just as she had begun to surrender to it.

The door clicked shut behind him, leaving Jerica standing there, her body thrumming with the aftermath of their kiss. The fire still blazed inside her, and the thought of him walking out—just when she needed him most—made her ache even more.

She pressed a trembling hand to her chest, trying to catch her breath as the room spun around her. Her body still hummed with the memory of his lips, the fire he had ignited refusing to die down.

She could still feel the weight of his presence, the heat of his breath against her mouth, and no matter how hard she tried to calm herself, the truth remained: she wanted him. Desperately.

It was unnerving how easily he could still affect her. A single, heated gaze from him, a simple touch of his lips, and she was undone. Her knees weakened, her thoughts scrambled, and all the walls she had painstakingly built around her heart felt like they were crumbling. How could she resist him when his mere presence made her body betray her?

The thought troubled her. If a single kiss could undo her, could she really go through with a divorce? Could she pull herself away from him when her body screamed for more? The desire that had simmered beneath the surface for so long had been reignited, and now, she was more uncertain than ever.

Her gaze wandered aimlessly around the room until it landed on the red dot of the camera, blinking in silent vigilance. A sharp reminder of where she was, and how far things had gone. Her heart pounded in her chest as reality came crashing back, chasing away the haze of passion that had clouded her judgment.

Stop being pathetic, she told herself.

A deep breath escaped her lips as she straightened herself, trying to regain some semblance of composure. No matter how intense their moment had been or how much she still craved him, this wasn’t the place for it.

Whatever was happening between them, it needed to be addressed somewhere else—away from prying eyes, away from the red dot of the camera that might have captured more than it should. It needed to be solved at home, in the place where everything had unraveled.

Because the truth was, despite everything, despite her anger, confusion, and hurt, she wasn’t ready to give up on him. Not yet.