A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but this chapter was seriously hard to write, so it took me a while, and it's not even that long -_-''. Anyway, enjoy!!!

Chapter Seven

Gradually, Delia's senses returned. The first thing she felt was the killer headache that almost sent her straight back into the darkness. However, she overcame her brain's protest. When she tried to move, she realized that she couldn't feel her left arm for some odd reason.

What on earth happened? Delia opened her eyes with great effort. Her eyelids felt like they were glued together. Her headache was getting worse. As she took in her surroundings by slowly moving her head around, she noticed that she wasn't in her bedroom at home.

The bed she was in had a high canopy and what she thought may be silk sheets, though her senses were still in disarray so she couldn't be certain. Her bed at home wasn't this big and definitely did not have the canopy. She rather felt like she was in a fairy tale of some sort, like Sleeping Beauty, except she was missing her prince.

Anyway, the room she currently occupied was covered in darkness, but with the moon's soft lighting she could see that it had none of her band posters. Instead, classical oil paintings decorated the walls that were painted a deep blue. To her right were two French doors that led out to a balcony. She could also see another door that she thought may have led to either the bathroom or a closet.

She suddenly felt uncomfortable just lying in bed, so against all her good judgments, she struggled to sit up. It took her maybe five minutes to accomplish this task. By then, she was sweating and breathless. At least she found out why she couldn't feel her left arm. It was set up in a cast. However, none of that compared to the shock she felt when she realized that she was no longer wearing her old clothes but was instead clad in a black silk nightgown, one usually worn by the Victoria's Secrets models on their commercials. She felt rather exposed and pulled up the silk sheets to cover herself with her right hand.

"You're awake."

Her head snapped to the direction of the deep masculine voice that sent a shiver down her spine. A mistake. Everything in front of her blurred into colorful swirls. If her back wasn't against the wall, she would've collapsed right there.

"Why am I here?" Delia asked once her brain allowed her to form coherent thoughts again through all the pounding. She saw him standing in the darkness, dressed casually in a black turtle neck and a pair of black slacks. The moon cast a sharp shadow over his features.

"You slammed into my limo," he said offhandedly as if they were talking about the weather and not a car accident that could cost him hundreds of thousands.

"I what?" Her mind apparently wasn't ready to comprehend his words or its implications.

Kaiba sighed. He stepped out of the shadows. In the harsh light of the moon, he looked rather tired and not as powerful and confident as she remembered. "It was two streets from Kaiba Corp when some car slammed into the side of the limo. I got out and saw that it was you. You ran a red light."

"Oh." Delia nodded. That was an explanation she could understand. "I'm sorry, but where am I?"

"This is my place. After the accident, I reached Hara just before she got on the plane to London. She and I both agreed that since you weren't seriously hurt, it's better for you to stay here instead of at the hospital. You only needed some stitches on your forehead and a cast for your arm."

"Where's Hara?"

"She's in the next room, sleeping. She stayed up for the entire day yesterday."

Delia nodded once again. She was tired. Her eyes struggled to stay open. It had taken most of her strength to sit up. Now just focusing on his words was becoming hard. "What about my parents?"

"They are worried, but they can't make it back because of the hurricane that's coming. It's another reason why you're staying here. Your parents thought that leaving you two alone during the hurricane wasn't a good idea."

"Yeah, that's definitely not a good idea," Delia whispered, more to herself than anything. Both Hara and she were terrified of storms. It was one of the few things they had in common other than their physical features. She could almost see the two of them huddling in one bed screaming with each other in terror if they were left alone during the hurricane. It brought a sardonic smile to her lips.

"Did I miss anything?" Kaiba's words brought her attention back to the present. He looked genuinely curious. Was it her, or did he seem nice, even approachable, tonight? He hadn't insulted her once and answered her questions without any complaint. This was certainly strange.

"Nothing," she replied. "How long was I out of it?"

"About two days." He sat on the edge of the bed. His intense blue eyes were focused on her, not missing anything in its forceful perusal. Delia felt discomfort creeping up her spine at his proximity. Her brain picked the perfect time to remember the kiss they had shared days earlier. Her face reddened at the memory. Thankfully, the room was too dark for Kaiba to notice the difference.

"You should go back to sleep," Kaiba said softly.

Delia didn't argue. She was exhausted. As she lied down again, with a little help from Kaiba, something occurred to her. "Were you here the entire time?" As soon as she asked the question, she realized how ridiculous that notion was. There was no way he would've been here the entire time.

"Yes."

His answer startled her. Her first reaction was that it was a lie, but why would he even bother? He knew that it didn't matter to her if he stayed or not. "You shouldn't have. I'm sure you were busy."

He said nothing. The silence of the room slowly lulled her down into the darkness. However, when the bed shifted as Kaiba stood up to leave, she whispered, "Don't go…" Even while she was semi-conscious, she didn't want to be alone. For some reason, tonight, Kaiba's presence was very reassuring, as if nothing could harm her if he was here.

When Delia woke the next time, it was still dark outside, so she couldn't tell if another day had already passed. Outside, the rain beat on the windows of the balcony doors while the strong wind rattled the frames. She sat up slowly and looked around before realizing that she was searching for someone. However, he wasn't there. Even though she could hardly see in the darkness and he could just be hiding like before, she was certain that she was alone in the room.

At the same time, she recalled what she had said to him as she fell asleep, and heat crept up her face. God, he probably thinks there is something wrong with me! But then again… he already thinks I'm stupid, so I guess it doesn't really matter either way.

She sighed, feeling depressed. However, she didn't want to stay in bed anymore, so she got out of bed slowly. There were no more headaches, so she must be doing fine. She left the room to find herself at the end of a long hallway. She couldn't really see that far ahead because it was rather dark, considering only a few lights were on. She walked down the hallway as fast as her body would allow. As she came up to the next door, she heard soft voices and recognized both of them.

Since the door was open just a little bit, Delia looked inside to see Hara and Seto sitting beside one another in front of a computer. They were talking very seriously about something, but Hara had that blissful smile on her face. Seto also looked relaxed and seemed to enjoy the conversation as well. As much as she hated to admit it, she was jealous.

Oh man, what am I thinking? Delia shouted at herself. This was Hara, her twin sister. She'd never been jealous of Hara before, but that was a lie, she suddenly realized. She had always been jealous of Hara, who was prettier, smarter, and the one her parents loved.

I must've hit my head or something during the accident. That has to be it, or why am I thinking this way? Jealous of Hara? And all because of a guy? You've gotta be kidding me.

Delia shook her head to clear away the envious thoughts. She scooted away from the door carefully, making sure they won't hear her, and headed down the hallway, trying to get the image of Kaiba looking so relaxed and gentle with Hara out of her mind.

After a few minutes, she finally found the stairs and walked down. She didn't notice anything around her except for the double doors leading outside. She flung open the doors with more force than she had meant to. The strong force of wind that came through knocked her back a few steps. It was pouring outside while lightning flashed every few second or so, followed by the sound of thunder.

However, she didn't care. Somehow, just within minutes, she started hating her life. Just what had happened? She had always had an optimistic view of life, but now that she looked at it another way, everything about her life seemed wrong.

Unable to stand the confusing thoughts flooding her brain, she rushed outside in the rain and screamed as loudly as she could, glad that the howling wind and rumbling thunder drowned out her misery.

What she really wished was that it would take away her new-found feeling for Seto Kaiba.

Delia didn't remember what exactly happened afterwards because it all felt like a dream. Someone must have seen her drenched in the rain outside after she collapsed. Whoever it was must've taken her inside again and put her to bed. Then her skin started to burn, but inside she was cold to the core. Time passed in strange intervals as she drifted in and out of consciousness, sometimes hearing distant voices.

After a while, darkness enveloped her. When she became conscious again, Kaiba was sitting in a chair beside the bed, sleeping. His hair was somewhat unkempt, his clothing wrinkled. This was the first time she had ever seen the meticulous Seto Kaiba like this. It made him a lot more human.

Slowly, she sat up, careful not to wake him up and got out of bed. Outside, the rain had stopped and the sky had cleared away. She wondered how many days had passed since she had collapsed in the rain and who had found her. She opened the balcony doors and leaned against the rail. The night was beautiful. There was not a bit of cloud outside. It was a full moon and stars littered the sky, making everything in the world look magical.

Delia shivered as a gentle breeze blew by. Then she felt someone wrap a long coat around her.

"You shouldn't be outside." His words whispered over her skin, causing goosebumps that had nothing to do with the chilly air.

"Did I wake you?" She turned and moved away from him. "Why are you still here? What happened?"

"You ask too many questions," he said and leaned against the rail.

The top two buttons of his shirt were unbuttoned, revealing his tanned throat. She had the strange desire to unbutton his shirt little by little and ran her hands over his hard chest. And because this made her hate herself, and because he had no right to stand there looking sexy while her entire world was turning upside down, she snapped with all the nastiness she could muster, "You don't have to answer them!"

"I didn't answer them, did I?" he said simply, ignoring her bitterness. But his eyes betrayed his inner turmoil. "But what were you thinking, going outside when there is a hurricane?"

"I didn't know there was a hurricane and I just felt like it!" she answered defiantly. Who did he think he was? He had no right to scold her. If it wasn't for him, she wouldn't have had the accident in the first place.

"You almost died," he hissed angrily, his voice no longer calm.

"And your point is?" She stared at him as haughtily as possible.

"Since you're obviously OK, I'll be leaving," he said stiffly and turned to leave.

"You forgot your coat!" Delia shrugged out of the coat and regretted it the instant when the warmth left her body, but she refused to let him see her weakness as she fought back a shiver. Instead, she dangled the coat in front of her and lifted her eyebrows at him when he stopped walking and hesitated.

It took Seto a second to decide what to do. Standing there, with nothing on but the thin nightgown, she had no idea that she was temptation personified. With his mind set, he strode back toward her. However, rather than taking the coat she offered, he hauled her up against him not too gently and kissed her, something he'd desperately craved ever since that moment in his office when she had lit the fire under his skin.

Shocked, and crushed against him, Delia was powerless to stop him and the desire that suddenly sprung up between them. His lips were hard and commanding, and ruthless in their taking. She was kissing him back before she realized that she was responding to his highhandedness. But she had no time, no thoughts, of resisting. The coat dropped from her lifeless fingers. She was terribly aware of his warmth that seeped through the sheer material of her gown and wrapping itself around her, so that she thought she would never be cold again in her life.

Seto felt her give in as her mouth opened in invitation. He didn't waste any time as he angled his head and feasted. Plundered. She tasted exactly as he remembered, soft and sweet lips, with a hint of cotton candy. He gloried in her supple softness and drew her closer against his hard frame. This was what he knew would happen when his instincts for survival had went on alert the moment she'd bumped into him at school. That time in his office was just a taste. This time he intended to do much more.

Delia's head swam pleasantly. She'd known kisses, had kissed plenty of men before, but never one like this. Heat spread through her veins that had nothing to do with physical warmth. Her knees gave way so that she could only lean against him. Her hands seemed to have a will of their own as they tangled in his hair, pulling him even closer against her if that was possible.

Eventually the kiss slowed, not before either of them was satisfied, but because Seto pulled back, knowing that he should go no further, not while she still disliked him with a passion to match the one they'd ignited with their kiss. But she made it no easier on him with swollen lips and stormy eyes full of desire.

"We have to stop," he touched his forehead to hers and said with a husky voice.

Delia took a deep breath. He was still too close for her peace of mind. "Yes. That shouldn't have happened."

He looked as if he was going to argue, but instead said, "It is late. You should go back to bed."

"I think I will."

Neither of them moved. Delia couldn't, considering Seto still had his arms locked around her. He didn't look like he was ready to move, and she had no wish to ask him. Despite everything, it felt nice to have him hold her. And it was to both of their chagrin when he finally let go of her and stepped back.

"Good night, Delia."

"Night, Kaiba."

Once again, he had that look as if he wanted to say something, but held back again. Instead, he shook his head and left without another word.

Delia watched him disappear into the darkness of the room and heard the door clicked behind him. She wasn't sure what had happened, but that kiss changed something inside of her, but for better or for worse, she had no idea.

She could only wait to find out.

A/N: please REVIEW!!!