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“What difference does it make?”

He lets out a sigh. “Alma, be honest with me. I’m tired of overthinking, dwelling on things, spending my life wondering if you’re going to slip away from me again. Is he still in love with you or not?”

Vadim waits patiently, until finally I respond.

“Yes, I think so.”

“Should I be worried about him?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

His gaze stays locked on my lips. And now, he’s moving dangerously closer.

“Your turn,” I whisper, without trying to escape him this time. “May?”

He gives me a joyless smile. “I’d like to tell you otherwise, but I only see you, Alma. I only want you. My damn heart has decided that’s how it is.”

A shiver runs down my spine. I’ll never get used to the insane intensity of this man.

“Are you sure?”

“You have no idea…”

I can’t resist for another second. The urge to touch him. To feel him pressed against me. All of him. To feel his muscular arms wrapping around me and pulling me close. His hands framing my face, his warm lips kissing mine.

Vadim waits a signal from me before deepening the kiss. I moan against his lips, and he slips his tongue between them, taking control.

“You + Me, nothing else.”

This crazy dance has me practically swooning.

Vadim kisses me as if his life depends on it, with a tenderness that melts me and a strength that leaves me breathless. A delicious heat spreads beneath my skin. It feels so good that I lose all sense of reason. I bite him. He groans, pins me to the wall, kisses me even more intensely… then pulls back.

“Alma, I didn’t come here for this,” he murmurs as he pulls away from my lips. “I just wanted you and me to talk. About us.”

“It’s dangerous when you and I talk too much.”

I smile at him, and his laugh mingles with mine.

Vadim throws his head back and lets out a groan. “You’re quite a handful, Alma Lancaster.”

His eyes find mine again. They tell me he wants me but doesn’t dare give in. He doesn’t trust what’s between us. Not completely. Not yet.

“But dammit, I’ve never wanted anyone else the way I want you.”

More shivers ripple through me.

“So, what are you waiting for?” I breathe.

My eyes implore him to dive into the unknown with me, to forget his doubts, his hesitations, his logic. I brush away a lock of his hair. My T-shirt slips off my shoulder, revealing my bare skin.

“You’re playing dirty, Alma.”

“Maybe.”