Page 16 of The Don's Forbidden Obsession

As I climbed out of bed and tiptoed around the room, I spotted some items in the hallway.

Shirt, check.

Pants, check.

Bra? Check

Where the hell are my panties?

Finally catching a glimpse of them in the kitchen, I sighed with relief.

Time to get dressed and bolt.

As I sneaked out of the apartment — through the window we had climbed in the day before — I couldn't help but take a last craning glance into the bedroom at the slumbering man I’d spent the night with. He looked peaceful, with a contented smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

I sighed, almost dreamily, but then, realizing I had no time to dwell on the intimate moments we had shared, shook my head, and sauntered onto the fire escape.

Duty called.

I bolted through the city streets, my feet pounding with intensity. I was in the same yoga pants and hoodie from the day before. My hair was a mess. I could only hope no one would notice how disheveled I was.

Dodging pedestrians and narrowly avoiding collisions with douchebag cab drivers, I panted. I still had six blocks to go.

Sweat trickled down my forehead and adrenaline drummed in my veins. Today was already not my lucky day, and I knew Captain would be pissed at me for being late.

* * *

With ragged breath,I made my way to my desk on the fifth floor. With any luck, I could sneak in and get right to work. But today was not my lucky day.

There he stood.

Captain.

His arms crossed, and a scowl plastered across his face.

His face was red. Jaw clenched.

The man looked like a ticking time bomb. I knew I was about to get my ass handed to me.

I sighed and approached him cautiously. His piercing gaze was locked onto me, and I knew by the intensity of his stare that he was ready to lash out.

I slumped my shoulders and down at the floor as I continued my approach. I felt more and more invaded with every step like he was peeking into my soul.

I was trying to dredge up any type of excuse that I possibly could.

Anything but the truth.

Anything but telling him I’d slept with a random man from a random bar in the middle of a shitty neighborhood.

"Betrami!" he bellowed, his voice cutting through the noise of the office building. "You missed the damn debriefing!”

I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I winced at the volume of his voice.

This is not how I envisioned starting my day.

"Yeah, I’m sorry,” I murmured. “I got caught in the damn traffic. It was like a zombie apocalypse out there.”

But he wasn't in the mood for my excuses. His frustration simmered beneath the surface as he leaned in close. “How long have you lived in New York?”

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