Page 109 of Lady and the Hitman
I didn’t answer.
His voice dropped, dark silk over steel. “Someonesmall enough not to take up too much space? Gentle enough to leave you untouched?”
“I used to think so. Trevor and I dated for a while.”
“And now?”
I met his gaze. “Now, I don’t know what the fuck I was thinking.”
A muscle ticked in his jaw. “You’re not meant for small.”
“I know.”
He leaned in, his body heat coiling around me like a storm just waiting to strike. “You’re not meant to be handled with gloves, Zara. You’re meant to be held down and worshipped.”
My breath caught.
“You’re not meant for men like Trevor.” His voice was quieter now, lethal in its intimacy. “You’re meant for men like me.”
The air between us pulsed.
I didn’t say a word.
I didn’t have to.
“Put on a dress,” he said.
I blinked. “What?”
“We’re going to dinner. Downtown.”
My stomach twisted. “Ronan?—”
“You can’t put me off forever, Zara.”
“I’m not putting you off,” I said, even though I was.
He stepped forward until we were nearly chest to chest. “Yes, you are. You want this when it’s convenient. When it’s private. But I’m done hiding.”
“I’m not hiding you,” I whispered.
He reached for my wrist, fingers brushing the bracelet he’d given me. “Then prove it.”
I didn’t move.
“Let me take you out,” he said, voice rougher now. “Let me show you what it looks like when a man wants you in the light.”
The weight of it all pressed down on me—the heat of his gaze, the thrum between my thighs, the impossible choices crowding my chest.
And somewhere inside that tangle of fear and want and resistance … a little voice whispered:Say yes.
I almost said it out loud.
The words danced on my tongue like a dare, aching to be spoken. But I couldn’t. Not yet.
“I want to,” I said, my voice too soft, too full of longing. “But not here. Not where someone might?—”
I paused, swallowing hard. “Not where someone might recognize me.”
