Page 82 of Key of Kink

He moved close enough to me that the air shifted again.

“This ends one of two ways,” he said quietly.

My stomach dropped.

“Either we walk out of here and pretend this didn’t happen.”

I swallowed. My brain tried to picture us leaving, keeping it casual, saying nothing.

Nope. Not happening. Not now.

“And the other option?” I asked.

He didn’t hesitate. “You come back to my place. And we finish what we started.”

No teasing, no edge of humour, just words laced with certainty.

God, my heart…

I’d wanted to shake him up. I’d flirted, pushed….

I hadn’t expected him to open a door.

“You’re sure?” I had to ask, not as a challenge, but because I needed to check.

He looked at me as if the decision had already been made, then stepped back, his control sliding into place for the sake of the room.

“Five minutes,” he said. “Then we leave.”

The way he said it, so calm, so final, left no space for doubt.

He wasn’t reacting or losing control.

He’s choosing me.

That might have been the hottest thing of all.

We barely spoke as we walked towards the Tube. There was so much I could’ve said, but I didn’t dare. It felt as though if either of us started, something would tip the balance. Max walked half a step ahead of me, his shoulders tight under his jacket. He wasn’t looking at me, and for once I was grateful.

I lost myself in the noise of the station, waiting for the train to pull in. Everything felt so… ordinary.

Did that even happen?

Did I almost get fucked in the gym locker room? I shivered.

The train was packed, bodies pressed shoulder to shoulder, the announcements so loud they were jarring. I stood in front of Max, and the doors slid shut.

Then the carriage lurched, and suddenly he was right there, his chest against my back, one hand braced above my shoulder, the other settling low at my waist to steady me.

The train jolted, and I swayed back into him. He didn’t move away. Neither did I.

“I suppose you’re feeling very pleased with yourself,” he murmured close to my ear.

I was beyond pleased.

“You shouldn’t be, you know.”

That sent a trickle of something electric down my spine. “Why not?”