Page 23 of Obsession

Want, need, longing, and a deep craving flooded inside her, making her ache. He was the only man to ever make her feel so much. For years, she had tried to forget him. But he only had to be near her like this, to touch her like he was, and everything in her came alive. The need to know if he felt it too shot through her.

Her tongue darted out, licking the tip of his finger. Fire leapt in his brown-gold orbs. Feeling bolder, she took his whole finger in her mouth, sucking on it. A ragged breath escaped his lips as she swirled her tongue around his index finger.

Fire leapt in her belly; her core pulsed with that familiar ache that only he had ever eased.

Mihir tugged his finger out of her mouth and held her arms, pulling her closer to him. His large hands slid up and down her back. She looked into his face; it was mere inches from hers. Desire hummed in her blood. Lust filled her veins. The ache in her core intensified. His mouth lowered; hers rose to meet his.

A tiny voice of a reason broke through her hazy mind. She pushed at his chest, before she gave in to the insanity consuming her. Mihir released her at once.

The fire in his eyes had now given way to anger as he stared at her. Like it was her fault they’d been about to kiss. Without a word, she climbed inside her car and reversed out of the parking lot. She didn’t even give him a single glance as she drove off.

Once she could no longer see him in her rear-view mirror, she pressed a hand to her chest. Her heart felt like it had run in a marathon. She breathed out. What was wrong with her? Mihir had made his dislike for her clear so many times, yet she’d been about to kiss him. As if last night, being plastered in his arms, hadn’t been a big enough mistake that she’d been about to make a bigger one today.

She and he meant nothing to one another. Even that small thread of a marriage certificate that bound them together was going to be destroyed in a few days. She had no business being attracted to him. It was a good thing she’d come to her senses when she had.

But why had Mihir behaved as if he, too, had been caught in the moment? She shook her head. He wasn’t caught in anything. Just seconds prior tothatmoment, he’d told her that seeing her break down had been his life’s mission.

Yes, that was it. He’d been about to kiss her to only prove a point. That he held the upper hand in whatever it was between them. That he could still get any reaction he wanted from her, physically or emotionally. She’d never give him that pleasure. Ever.

This unspoken truce between them was temporary, only for their siblings. She wasn’t going to make more of it. And she was definitely not going to be in a situation where she’d be so close to Mihir Oshnov again.

Nope. Never. Not happening.

6

Mihir stormed inside O-Corp’s Dubai office, angry with himself for getting carried away like he had. He’d been a second away from making a huge mistake.

Entering the elevator, he jabbed the lone button that would take him straight to the top executive floor. He studied his reflection in the mirrored walls. On the surface, he looked like a successful businessman—unshakeable, calm, and composed. The reality, however, was far from it. Only he knew how he was still trying to pull himself together on the inside after the impact of having her back in his arms. Years had passed, but her power over him remained unchanged. She was the only woman capable of stirring his body to the point of burning desire and painful, desperate need. He threw his head back against the elevator wall, frustrated and angry with himself.

Dammit, it was all his fault. He was an idiot to have been moved by her tears. He should have let her go when she had asked him to. He never should have touched her lips. Then he wouldn’t have been so aroused when Anna had wrapped her mouth around his finger. His mind would have never recalled that time when her pretty lips were wrapped around another part of his anatomy—the part that had become raging hard when she had started to suck on his finger. Everything had gone downhill from there.

For the first time in years, his mind had blanked out, and the urge to claim her had reigned supreme. In that moment, he had completely forgotten that she had betrayed him and he had become who he was thanks to her deceit. He had forgotten all that mattered and was about to kiss her.

It was a good thing that she’d pushed him away. He exhaled a rough breath. Even now, simply thinking about her made his body ache.

The elevator pinged on his floor. He got out and headed to his office. He opened the door and found both his brothers seated inside, chatting.

“Since when has my office become a common conference room for you two?” he barked in Russian.

Armaan grinned. “Somebody’s in a mood.”

“When is henotin a mood?” Vedant added.

Ignoring them, Mihir headed to the tall table beside his desk, where his laptop was already set up. He usually liked to work standing. It gave him the freedom to easily pace about whenever he got into a call, and he got into several calls in a day.

“Youdoremember that you called us here,” Vedant said stiffly.

Mihir looked up from his laptop. His youngest brother looked pissed, and Vedant was hardly ever pissed.

“Mihir, what’s up?” Armaan asked. “You messaged us last night to meet here. We’ve been waiting for ten minutes. Imagine our surprise when we learned from your assistant that you were out for a coffee meeting in the middle of a workday. Very unlike you, brother. Care to explain?”

Mihir ignored the question and went to where his brothers were seated. He sat on the sofa facing them.

“Last night, I had a meeting with the Estonians. With Andres Samson,” Mihir began. “He is the cousin of Paul Samson, the guy who shot Vedant.”

Armaan knotted his hands together. “What was the meeting for?”

“To gain their concurrence in helping us. As of now, they don’t know where Paul is, but they are going to help us find him. And once we find Paul, we will be one step closer to Ivan. It’s been six months since Ivan last acted against us. His silence has been bothering me no end.”

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