Page 28 of Forced By the Bratva

Then she realized what she was doing.

I felt it the second it happened, the shift in her, the way her whole body went stiff against mine.

She pulled back fast, putting space between us, and I watched her gaze drop to what she was wearing under the dim light.

Iris cleared her throat, fingers tugging down the hem of her shirt while adjusting the top three undone buttons.

The glimpse of her cleavage I’d caught earlier was now burned into the back of my mind. The hem grazed her alluring thighs, not hiding much of anything.

Embarrassment crossed her face first. Then something closer to anger, quick and defensive, as if she were furious at herself for the moment more than at me.

I looked away from her before I could get carried away by the provocative scene in front of me.

“I can’t believe you screamed so loudly and had me running up here because of a spider,” I said, filling the awkward silence.

“That spider was going to jump on my head,” she replied, her voice as sweet as honey.

“It was on the wall. It wasn’t going anywhere near you.”

“You don’t know that,” she insisted, her brows furrowing.

I exhaled softly. “Well, it’s gone.”

“Check the window.” She pointed in that direction. “Close it. I don’t want it crawling back inside.”

Silence.

I hesitated for a moment, shocked by the scene unfolding right now. Quietly, I headed over to the window and did as she wanted before turning to face her.

“Done. Happy now?”

She paused, avoiding my eyes. “Thank you.”

I stepped closer. “Hold on. You’ve threatened to kill me. Twice now. With a knife and a pencil.” I halted before her with slightly raised brows. “But somehow you’re afraid of a spider?”

“Don’t look at me like that.” She scratched the back of her head. “The spider had eight legs. You have two.”

I nearly laughed at that joke. And even though I didn’t, I let my expression crack a bit. Her eyes crinkled at the corners as a small grin played on her lips.

She looked so gorgeous. Sexy. And it took every ounce of self-discipline in me to restrain myself from making a move on her.

Her legs were alluring. Her eyes were beautiful. The soft skin above her breasts was enticing, and her lips seemed to be calling out to me.

Every cell in my body was awakened at the sight of her. My heart was racing, my cock swelling between my legs. We stared into each other’s eyes longer than we were supposed to. And with each passing moment, I found myself closing the distance between us.

She didn’t pull away.

She didn’t push me back either.

The temptation was so strong it was starting to cloud my reasoning. I knew this was my cue to bolt. If I stayed in here any longer, holding her gaze and smelling her signature scent, I’d lose whatever little control I had left.

I studied her for a brief moment, wondering if she wanted me as badly as I wanted her. Would that explain why she hadn’t pushed me away? Would that explain the hint of what looked like desire in her eyes?

In a heartbeat, I snapped out of it and took a step back. She drew a deep breath, tense, her eyes dropping to the floor.

I left the room without thinking twice and closed the door behind me.

Standing in the hallway, I tried very hard not to think about how badly I still wanted her.