Page 37 of Silence and Surrender

“You do.” He moved around the island, closer than strictly necessary. “I’ve noticed it in meetings too, when you’re examining a particularly interesting piece, or when you’ve solved a puzzle in the documentation.”

“You watch me in meetings?”

“I watch you everywhere.” The admission seemed to surprise him as much as me. He ran a hand through his hair—a gesture I was learning meant he was struggling internally with something. “I shouldn’t. But I can’t seem to stop.”

I set down my fork carefully, too aware of his proximity. “And what do you see when you watch me?”

“Everything I want and shouldn’t have.” He leaned against the counter, close enough that I could see the faint shadow of stubble along his jaw. “Everything that makes me question who I thought I was.”

“Things like what?” My voice came out breathier than intended, but I had to know. Had to know if I was imagining this heat between us, or if it was real.

His eyes dropped to my mouth for just a moment before meeting mine again. “Like how much I want to kiss you right now.”

His bold confession hung between us, electric in the quiet kitchen. Another sigh escaped from my lips, and his eyes darkened at the sound.

I finally turned to face him fully. “What’s stopping you, Colton?”

“Isabella.” My name escaped his lips like a prayer, his voice containing barely restrained longing. His eyes darkened as they fixed on mine, the heat in them making my breath catch. “If I kiss you now, heaven help me, I won’t be able to stop. I’d lose myself completely in you. Every taste would only leave me desperate for more until I’d devoured every inch of your skin with my lips.”

He moved closer, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating from his body, smell the intoxicating blend of his cologne and something uniquely Colton. His fingertips barely grazed my cheek, the gentlest touch that somehow burned.

“And trust me, my exquisite, beautiful masterpiece,” he continued, his voice dropping to a whisper that caressed my senses, “it wouldn’t end with just a kiss. It would consume us both entirely. And I can’t bear to offer you stolen moments in shadowed corners when you deserve to be worshipped properly, thoroughly, without the constant shadow of danger hanging over us. You deserve everything—all of me—not just fragments stolen between heartbeats.”

“Maybe I want this. Maybe I’ve wanted this for longer than I care to admit.”

His pushed a strand of hair behind my ear with aching gentleness. The calluses on his fingers created a delicious friction against my skin. “Fuck, Isabella. You make me forget every rule I’ve ever made for myself the past five years.”

“Good.” I leaned into his touch, feeling the slight tremor in his large fingers. My own hands found the front of his shirt, feeling the solid warmth of him beneath the fine cotton. “Some rules need breaking.”

A sound caught between a laugh and a groan escaped him. “You’re going to be the death of my self-control.”

“Promise?”

His eyes widened at my challenge, pupils dilating until only a thin ring of brown remained. He moved with that contained power I’d been watching all evening, backing me against the kitchen island. One hand slid into my hair while the other gripped my hip, and suddenly he was everywhere—the heat of him pressing against me, the soft, yet masculine scent of him filling my lungs, his breath warm against my lips.

“Isabella.” Just my name again. But on his tongue it was rough, almost painful. His mouth hovered a breath away from mine, close enough that I could feel his words rather than hear them. “Tell me to stop.”

Instead, I arched my back, bringing us closer, letting my hands slide up his chest to his shoulders. The muscles there bunched under my touch, betraying how tightly he was holding himself in check. His forehead dropped to rest against mine, and I felt him shudder when my fingers found the bare skin at his neck.

“Please,” I whispered, though I wasn’t sure what I was asking for. His hands tightened on my hips, and I gasped at the sensation of being held by those strong hands. I waited for him to close that final distance, to finally let me taste him, but he held himself rigidly still, fighting some internal battle I could feel in every tense muscle of his body.

Time seemed to stretch between us, heavy with possibility and unbridled desire. His thumb traced my lower lip, and I had to bite back a moan at the intimate touch. Every breath brought us closer, papers sliding forgotten to the floor as he pressed me harder against the counter. The anticipation was exquisite torture—being this close, feeling the heat radiating from his body, knowing how badly we both wanted this, yet neither of us daring to take that final step.

When he sighed and then finally pulled back without kissing me, it felt like tearing open a raw wound. I felt a physical sensation of deep loss, an undercurrent of frustration and desire. We were both breathing hard, and I could see the rigid control it took for him to put that small space between us. His hands stayed on my waist though, like he couldn’t quite make himself let go completely.

“We shouldn’t,” he said in a hushed voice, though his eyes never left my mouth. “The bank, the investigation, the danger...”

“Is that the lawyer talking?” I managed, hands still fisted in his shirt. “Or the man?”

“Both.” His thumb traced my lower lip again, making me shiver. “I can’t protect you if I’m distracted.”

“I don’t need protection.” I pressed closer, feeling his heart race against my palm. “I need you. Just you.”

He groaned and bit his bottom lip.

His laptop pinged, making us both jump. Reality crashed back in—the investigation, the bank’s surveillance, the danger we were both in.

Colton stepped back slowly. “We should...”

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