Page 69 of The Enemy of My Enemy Is… My Fake Boyfriend?

"I—I don't know."

A million thoughts and excuses collided in my brain. But none of them made sense as I stared up into his unfathomable blue eyes, his gaze so sharp it seared my soul. I could never admit to him the real reason I wanted to run. I could barely admit it to myself, let alone Ethan.

"Did you decide?" he asked. "Are we still doing this thing?"

"I—I don't know." Could I sound any more stupid?

"Then why are you here?"

I needed to see you. "I—I—"

"If you say I don't know again..." he murmured, his grip on my arm loosening, a glint of humor in his eyes.

I felt my face flush, or maybe it was the brief moment of exertion making me blush, or the way Ethan was staring at me, so close all I could think about was his lips on me, his hands on me, all the things I wanted to do with him, to him.

Heat flared between us and he leaned closer. "Please say yes."

"Yes." God, I was weak.

His gaze went to my lips, the moment growing even more intense, the pull between us like nothing I'd ever felt before in my life. Kissing Ethan was more than a want, more than a fleeting desire. It'd become aneed.

But just when I started to close my eyes in anticipation, he pulled away, the heat thrumming through me growing cool from the abrupt change.

"Good," he smiled, that dimple popping, almost mocking me with how damn hot he was. "And this time, I'll stop myself from touching you. Unless it's absolutely necessary."

I swallowed my disappointment. "Right. Sure."

"It's settled then."

"Yep, all good. All settled."

He grinned at me, a smile that seemed to say something else, that hid layers behind it, layers I couldn't quite understand.

"Come with me," he suddenly said. "We were just about to do something I think you'll appreciate."

Despite his words just seconds ago about not touching me, I was surprised when his big hand grabbed mine and he led me forward, out of the stairwell, and back onto his floor. And he didn't let go as we walked through his office, my eyes trying to take in everything around me, the space all modern sophistication with sleek, cool tones of gray and silver everywhere, glass walls, and open workspaces.

It was surprising to see for some reason, not at all what I would have anticipated. I wasn't sure what I'd been expecting, but certainly not smiling faces or Ethan's employees happily chatting with each other, grinning at Ethan and me as we walked past.

He said a few words here and there, an easy camaraderie apparent between him and his people, introducing me as wewent. The vibe was completely opposite from what I'd been told about Ethan.

There was nothing sinister about this office or Ethan's employees, nothing shady, sketchy, or "fishy" as my dad had said. People didn't cower and tremble at the sight of their evil overlord, quite the opposite in fact.

I couldn't help comparing it all to Chase's company which had a completely different feel, hushed voices whenever I'd visited, like secrets were being whispered about who knew what.

Was it just me? Was I imagining everything?

After wandering through, Ethan's firm hand still leading me, we entered a stunning corner office, Manhattan spread out before us, the sunlight fading and the city coming alive.

"Wow," I gasped, taking it all in, the sleek furniture and décor perfectly fitting Ethan's vibe. "This is beautiful."

Before he could respond, someone knocked on the open door and came in. "It's about that time."

"Ah, David. Come in and meet Aria."

David looked young, almost puppy-like, eager, happy, and again, completely opposite of what I'd expect from Ethan's assistant that he'd mentioned a few times. I was aware that he knew about our situation, and it was nice to meet someone who was in on it with us.

"Pleasure," he said while shaking my hand, the smile he wore reflected in his eyes like he truly meant it.

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