Page 135 of The Fine Line
I pull back slightly, arching a brow.
“You’d automatically lose,” she says. “Because it can’t happen. We have rules. Remember?”
“I remember.”
“You better. You agreed to them.”
I nod slowly. “I did.”
“So we have nothing more to discuss?—”
“I said I wouldn’t lay a finger on you.”
She lifts her chin. “Exactly.”
“But here’s the thing, Cub…” I lean in, lips grazing her ear. “I don’t need to.”
She stiffens, goosebumps rising across her neck.
“I could make you fall apart without ever touching you.”
She tilts her head, defiant. “You think you’ve got women all figured out,don’t you?”
“Yeah,” I say, eyes steady. “But you? You’re different.”
“You don’t know me.”
“Keep lying to yourself, Baby Bear.” I pull her hands gently into mine. “I see right through you. Just like you see through me.”
Her lips press together, and for a second, neither of us breathes.
Then I drop her hands and take a step back. She shifts, nearly slipping off the counter, catching herself fast. She scowls, like she expected me to keep going. I lean against the wall opposite her, arms crossed, not saying a word.
After a few beats, she pushes off the counter.
“Don’t.”
She pauses. “What?”
“You heard me.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re gonna stay right there.”
She scoffs. “Why would I do that?”
I let my arms drop as I approach her again, slow and deliberate.
“Because I’m not finished.”
“What the—” she starts, but I step in close and press my palm flat to the mirror beside her head—not touching her, just close enough to feel the air shift.
She draws back slightly, lips parted.
“You’re always in control,” I whisper. “Every move, every word. Always calculating. Composed. People see you as unshakable—untouchable. And you love that, don’t you? Being the one with all the answers that answers to no one. The one holding the power.”
She doesn’t respond, but her breath hitches.
