Oh… my.I’m half-naked.
Nervousness floods through me, and as always when I’m nervous, I start fidgeting with my fingers and talking too much.
“What are you doing here?” I go on the offensive to hide my embarrassment. “That lock is top-of-the-line! Sasha installed it himself just for me!”
“You won’t believe who recommended this locking system to him.”
Devlin stands up, and because of the shadows, his silhouette looks gigantic. I suddenly feel like I need to back away.
And for some reason, that gives me the most wonderful thrill—like warm needles running across my skin, creating pleasant waves of sensation.
He takes a step toward me.
I take a step back.
His eyes never leave mine.
10
Chapter 10
“You haven’t answered my question about what you’re doing here.”
I try to sound confident. I really do.
I square my shoulders, clutching the damp towel around my waist as if it’s a suit of armor, but I can hear the wobble in my voice. I sound small. I sound like the biology nerd who spends more time talking to turtles than humans.
My skin is still prickling from the cold water, and the looming mountain of a man standing near my desk chair is making my brain short-circuit.
I just hope I don’t start backing away. He already thinks I’m a dimwit or some delicate flower. I won’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me retreat.
Devlin watches me, his dark eyes tracking the way my chest heaves. “I gave you a three-day break,” he says, his voice likegravel. “Thank God, you’ve been sitting here almost the whole time, only going to classes and to see your animals. I approve.”
My eyes widen. The embarrassment of being half-naked is momentarily eclipsed by pure shock. “You… gave me a break?Err… a break from what? You didn’t even tell me anything. You’ve been stalking me?”
“A break from… me,” Devlin replies after a heavy beat.
He begins to approach me, slow and predatory. I’m too stunned to move, paralyzed at the opposite end of the bed as he enters my personal space.
“What made you think I needed a break?” I stumble over the syllables.
He doesn’t answer with words. Instead, he moves with a terrifying, silent speed.
He’s behind me before I can blink, pressing my bare back sharply against the solid wall of his chest. His hands find my waist, holding me with a grip that feels weightless yet utterly unbreakable. He nudges my head to the side, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear.
“Stop shivering, sweetie. Don’t worry, nothing’s going to happen,” he whispers. The heat of his breath makes my knees turn to water. “I just needed to check that you were all right. I’m very upset that you ran off without telling me, but I knew this would happen, so I followed you straight away.”
“I’m not shivering,” I lie stubbornly, even as a fresh tremor racks my body. “It’s just the cold. From the shower.”
Inside, my head is screaming. Nothing’s going to happen? After the way he looked at me?
My heart is drumming against my ribs so hard I’m sure he can feel it through my spine. I want something to happen. I want that drug-like euphoria I felt in the hallway again. I’m ready to burn for it.
Devlin lets out a soft, dark chuckle against my skin. “Sweetie. Okay, whatever you say. Soon you’ll be under the duvet and it won’t be cold anymore. And I’ll leave.”
His condescension strips away my confidence more effectively than the loss of my clothes ever could, leaving me feeling raw and exposed.Sweetie.The authoritative, patronizing tone—the way he just praised me for ‘good behavior’ as if I’m one of my rescue rabbits.
Irritation explodes in my chest, and I turn sharply in his arms to face him, the towel nearly slipping.
