“The rehearsal dinner is in three days. You’ll be surprised there too.”
Her chin lifts. “Maybe you should stop surprising me.”
“No.”
Her blush deepens, and my cock gets harder because she likes it. She likes the bluntness. The orders. The way I stand close enough to steal her air and still make her choose whether to lean in.
She is innocent. I know it in the way she watches me, in the way curiosity fights with nerves across her face, in the way her body reacts before she understands the reaction.
I should be gentler with that.
I will be as gentle as I can.
That is the best I can promise.
I release her wrist and set my hand at her waist.
The same place I touched her in front of Lydia and Wesley.
Natalie takes one sharp breath.
“Breathe,” I say.
“I am.”
“No.”
She sucks in air, then glares at me when she realizes I am right. “You are aware that being my boss does not include authority over my breathing, right?”
“It does today.”
“That cannot be legal.”
“I’ll have legal look into it.”
Her lips press together, fighting a smile.
I shift my hand, spreading my fingers over the curve of her waist. She goes still for a second, then forces herself to relax under my palm.
That trust hits harder than the trembling.
“When I touch you,” I say, “you lean into me.”
“I can do that.”
“Show me.”
Her eyes widen. “Right now?”
“Yes.”
She hesitates for one breath, then inches closer. Barely enough to count. Enough for me to feel the soft give of her body against mine.
My control pulls tight.
“More,” I say.
Her hands lift and settle on my chest.
