Page 90 of Made to Sin

“I’m not that fragile,” I snapped, my voice coming out sharper than I intended.

“So what is it? We were fine in the morning, but now, you won’t even look me in the eyes for more than three seconds.”

To prove that I could, I stared him straight in the eyes and counted to five in my head. Every second that passed tied knots around my chest, but I stubbornly refused to look away.

“There, can I go?”

He released an amused huff under his breath. “No.”

“Why not? My shift is over, and it’s late.”

“We can go to the house if you want, but I am not leaving your side until you tell me what’s wrong.”

I pursed my lips, definitely did not want that. If I thoughtbeing in an office was bad, there was no way I was surviving if we went back to his house. The memories of yesterday occupied almost every surface, and sex still permeated the air.

Divert, divert, divert.

“God, why do you care so much?”

“I care about every single thing about you, Katarina,” he stated with a matter-of-fact tone.

A toe-curling chill ran down my spine at his frankness. I didn’t know what I expected, but it was not what came out of his mouth. For fuck’s sake, he told Sofia he loved her less than five hours ago.

“Yeah, me, and how many others?” I mumbled.

He raised a sardonic brow. “Is there something I’m missing?”

“No, everything is great.”

Great that we were having this conversation. Great that he was saying all the right things. Goddamn great that I wanted nothing more than to spill my heart at his feet.

All that while he strung me along like we were making some friendship bracelets.

Lost in my thoughts, I hadn’t noticed him moving closer. He held my chin up, his voice gentle and worried. “What’s wrong?”

Apprehension filled my mind, but it didn’t stop the swarm of butterflies from fluttering in my stomach— especially when his thumb was caressing the indent of my chin.

I pushed his hand off of me. If he didn’t stop doing whatever it was that he was doing to my body, I was going to end up spilling the truth to him like I spilled every other secret.

“Nothing, Luciano. Remember how I told you no special treatment? Considering you’re my boss, I didn’t want anyone to say anything inappropriate about us.”

That was close enough to the truth, right?

“Well, then, it’s lucky for us, I make the rules around here. Nobody will say anything, and if they do, I’ll shoot them.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

He lifted a shoulder. “Honest.”

I shook my head in disbelief, a small grin unwillingly pulling on my lips. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

Whether it was what I said or something he read off my face, Luciano broke into a small, dark chuckle. As if I was watching my favorite telenovela, my eyes were glued on his handsome features.

Twinkling eyes. Mischievous smile. Charming words.

Despite knowing his heart would never be mine, I couldn’t help but make the wrong decision. It was foolish. It was selfish. It was going to hurt.

But, just for a little while, I allowed myself to indulge. Just for a little while, I needed to keep pretending that he was mine.

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