Page 41 of Mafia Shade's Reluctant Bride
She saw it.
She saw the storm in my eyes.
I forced a smirk. “What? Lost in my handsome face?”
Maria didn’t laugh. “Did my question stir up something?”
I turned away, reaching for a glass on my desk. “Relax, Maria. You’re overthinking.”
But she knew better.
Her eyes lingered on me for a second too long before she smiled—light and easy. A deliberate change of subject. “You know, despite everything, I think you’ve done well for yourself. You stepped up and took leadership. That’s not easy.”
I exhaled, tension slipping from my shoulders.
“Are you complimenting me?” I teased. “Careful, Maria. I might get used to it.”
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t push it.”
I smirked, but something about her words settled deep inside me. Maria had always seen me for who I was—before the business and before my last name turned into a chain around my neck.
And now, knowing she saw me as more than just a guy caught up in a world he didn’t choose, knowing she thought I was capable—God, it did something to me.
“You’ve always been the strong one,” I admitted. “The way you fight for yourself, for what you want…I’ve always admired that about you.”
Her lips parted, surprised and mesmerized by my words just as much as I was mesmerized by them.
I stepped closer, slowly counting the inches left to close the distance between us.
And she didn’t move away.
I watched the way her breath became shallow and the way her pulse flickered at her throat. My gaze dipped to her lips—soft, parted, and waiting.
I wanted to kiss her.
No, I needed to kiss her.
My fingers brushed her wrist, a barely-there touch, but it sent a shiver down her spine. I saw it. I felt it.
Maria’s eyes met mine, dark with the same desire I felt.
Neither of us moved.
Neither of us spoke.
I leaned in, already feeling her heaving breath on my face, my lips inches away from closing in on hers.
Knock. Knock.
The sound shattered the air between us.
Maria jerked back like she’d been burned. I closed my eyes, cursing under my breath.
Fuck!
CHAPTER TEN
MARIA
