Page 59 of Dancing with the Devil
Is he still upset? Did I make things worse by eavesdropping? Did—
“Nirah?” Antonio’s voice yanked me out of my thoughts, and my head snapped up. “Breathe.”
My brows drew together, and slowly, I exhaled. Much better.
Antonio found his place beside me and pinned me with a reassuring look. “I’m not upset with you.” I swear this man is telepathic. “We’ll talk about this after dinner,” he said, and I nodded in response.Sure, why not.
The table was filled with deliciously warm meals, and I could feel my mouth watering as my eyes consumed a little bit of everything.
We dished up, and just as expected, it was to die for. I didn’t know who was cooking back there, but if Antonio didn’t give them a raise, I’d gladly pull some money out of my own purse.
As the table was being cleared, I suppressed my overpowering thoughts in an attempt to not ruin a satisfactory dinner while staying as calm and as level-headed as possible.
Antonio pushed his chair back. “You’re still mad at me. Come here.”
I kept my voice flat. “I can hear perfectly fine from right here.”
He pinned me with a threatening look that dared me to stay seated, but before my brain could muster up courage for a reply, my body betrayed me by walking over and sitting down on his lap.
His hand slipped around my waist while his free hand rested on my thigh. The warmth of his touch shot up my thighs, landing at an unexpected place.Oh crap.
“Tell me the real reason why you won’t let me spend my money on you.”
I scoffed. “Because men always want something in return.”
His interest piqued. “Such as?”
“Oh, don’t play dumb with me,” I snapped back. “You know what I mean.”
His tone sent a shiver of fear down my spine. “Watch it.” I swallowed hard. “Explain it to me,tesoro.”
I chewed the inside of my cheek in a horrible attempt to fight back my smile.Tesoro. I liked the little pet name he had thought out for me because, well, it was mine. A strong part of me believed it was something degrading or insulting at first. But after I asked Silvia what it meant, I couldn’t believe my ears.
“Men always have an ulterior motive. They do things and expect whatever they want in return, and when you don’t oblige, they throw it in your face, making you feel—” I cut myself off, grabbing his hand that had been gently caressing my thigh. “Can you stop? It’s really hard to talk when you’re doing that.”
“Does my touch have an effect on you?” he asked, and I breathlessly scoffed
“No,” I crossed my arms over my chest.As if.
“Well then, we don’t have a problem here.”Smart ass. “Why did you stop talking?” he suddenly asked, and I sighed.
“Because, I don’t even remember what I was going to say…” I trailed off, feeling my stomach twist in uncertainty.
I lowered my eyes to lap but caught a glimpse of his hand, gently resting on my thigh. A million thoughts raced through my mind, and suddenly, it had gotten warmer in here.
His touch allowed tingles to ignite whenever he made contact with my skin, and something about that drew me even closer to him.I hated it.
“What if I can prove to you that I don’t have an ulterior motive?”
“You can’t. So don’t bother.”
Why do I want him to move his hand to the inside of my thigh? Fuck! Stay focused and calm down. He’s trying to have a mature conversation with you.
“I don’t have an ulterior motive, and I’ll prove it. Whether you like it or not,” he stated, and my head snapped up in his direction.
“You’re not going to give up, are you?
He shook his head. “I never give up.”Yeah, I gathered that much. “So fighting me is a battle you’ll lose.”
