“Us. You and me.”
“It is a done deal.” His voice was so deep I could feel it vibrate through me. “I told you that if you keep teasing me, we’ll have a problem.”
“And the problem is?” My eyes flicked back to his.
“I’ll give it to you right now.” His smile was sharp, wicked. “And you’re going to fucking like it.”
My pulse stuttered. Was he joking? Teasing? Or serious?
“Oh, Dangerous.” His eyes lit up when I said his new nickname. “You think we can do that without feelings?”
He hesitated, then looked down, fiddling with his fork. He knew exactly what I meant. We’d been undressing each other with words seconds ago, but this wasn’t just flirting anymore. We were moving into a new territory. The air changed between us. It wasn’t just tension anymore. This was something real.
“I don’t know,” he admitted finally. “I told you, I’ll do whatever you want. I just… need to know the limits.”
“I told you the limits,” I whispered.
“Those have changed now, don’t you think?” he said, his eyes dark and hungry.
I inhaled slowly, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “That’s because you keep blurring the lines.”
He leaned forward, his fork spinning lazily between his fingers. “I’m not blurring them. You are.”
“Ididn’t do anything.” The protest felt weak, even to me.
He hummed low, then pounced.
“What about when you told me you wanted me to bend you over a desk? Was that nothing?”
Heat rushed to my face. He had me, and he knewit.
“Maybe we quit,” I whispered.
His head snapped up. “No.”
The word came out so fast, too firm. “I’m not quitting,” he added. “I said I’d help you, and I will.”
I raised an eyebrow. “No sex. Okay?”
I didn’t mean it. I wanted to… so badly. My mouth said no, but my body said yes.
He looked at me, and in his gaze, there was his easy confidence, but underneath, something gentler, steadier. He wasn’t pushing me. He was letting me steer. But God, the way he looked at me made me want to drive off the cliff myself.
“We’ll be careful,” he said softly.
He wasn’t agreeing with me on the no sex.
His hand brushed mine on the table so faintly I could’ve imagined it. He gave me a smile then, not his crooked one. But a small, mischievous one that told me everything. He didn’t want to quit because he wanted me.
The waitress returned with our food, shattering the moment as if it were nothing. She placed our plates on the table.
Max leaned back in the booth, grinning like we were friends grabbing breakfast. This was so like him. One second, we were word fucking each other, and then the next, we were back to being besties.
I stole a strawberry from his plate and popped it into my mouth with a slow exaggeration.
He froze mid-bite. “Really?”
“Girlfriend perks,” I teased.
