Page 35 of Twisted Truths

I smile at Brandon. “I’d love to. Just let me set my wine down.”

He reaches for the glass in my hand. “I’ve got it.” He takes it from me and walks over to a nearby table, setting it near the edge. He offers me his elbow. “Shall we?”

I slide my arm through his, and he leads me onto the dance floor.

“This probably isn’t the best time to admit that I don’t know what I’m doing out here. I’m only accustomed to the kind of slow dancing you do in high school.”

Brandon chuckles and takes one hand, sliding his other one onto my back. “Follow my lead then.”

“Promise I’ll try not to step on your toes,” I say.

I fumble for the first minute, then I get the hang of it. I won’t be winning any dance competitions, but I’m not stepping on Brandon’s toes or tripping over my own feet, so I count it as a win.

“How often do you think you’ll be visiting DC now that you’re working for Voss Enterprises?” he asks.

“I’m not really sure. I expect that Mr. Voss will have me in tow whenever he needs to be here. I’m new to the corporation, so I’m not sure how often that is.”

Brandon smiles at me, gaze intent. “Probably at least once a month then. Maybe I can take you out next time you’re in town. Dinner.”

A feeling of discomfort tightens my chest, and I can’t pinpoint why exactly. But I’m a single woman, free to do what I want when I’m not being paid by Voss Enterprises, so I push away my unease and nod. “That would be nice.”

Triumph passes over Brandon’s face, and he pulls me closer to him as the song ends. Another one starts up immediately. Brandon leans into me, but someone taps my shoulder, and I turn to see Obsidian waiting and glowering.

Chapter

Fifteen

ARIANA

“We need to talk,” he barks. Then, seeming to remember that we’re not alone, his public façade slides on, and he says, “Care to dance while we do it?” He looks over my shoulder and gives Brandon a smile.

I turn back to Brandon. “Sorry. I’ll come find you after I take care of whatever he needs.”

The hand on my back squeezes me. “Looking forward to it.” Then Brandon nods at Obsidian and leaves the dance floor.

Obsidian’s hand is on my upper arm, spinning me around to face him immediately, then he pulls me into his arms. He doesn’t say anything as he spins me around the dance floor, and I’m loath to admit that he’s much smoother than Brandon.

“I thought you needed to talk to me?” I ask after he hasn’t spoken for a minute.

He doesn’t respond, but he grips me closer.

The press of my body against his feels impossible to ignore. Every time we move, my breasts slide against his hard chest, and a few times when I misstep, our thighs brush. Slowly, his hand snakes farther down my back until it’s resting just above my ass.

Is he trying to drive me mad?

“Obsidian, what did you need to talk to me about?”

He stops us from moving and pulls back enough to look at me. An unnamed emotion swirls in his eyes. “That’s the first time you’ve said my name.”

My cheeks heat. “I’m sorry, it was inappropriate. I’m just frustrated because you interrupted and said we needed to talk and then?—”

“No, I want you to use it when no one else is around. No more Mr. Voss.”

Our gazes lock until it feels too intimate, and I look away. I don’t know what to say to that, especially because it feels like it means something. As though it’s moved our relationship forward in a way I can’t understand. And so, I say nothing, no longer bothering to ask what he wanted to talk to me about.

He spins me around the dance floor, holding me closer than is appropriate, and his breaths make the fine hairs that have escaped my bun ruffle against my bare neck. My eyes drift closed, and I imagine the heavier, deeper breaths he might exhale if he were over me, ruthlessly fucking me.

My nipples pebble beneath the silk of my dress, and I grow wet between my thighs. I’ve never felt like this around another man. It’s not like I’ve never been turned on before, but I’ve never been turned on just by being around someone. Never imagined myself being with him just because he was near.

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