Page 222 of No Boss
Everything that had stood between them through the day had fallen away. The room felt smaller. Warmer.
Her fingers curled into her lehenga.
He looked at her, and that look did not pass. It settled over her until she felt it everywhere. On her face, along her throat, in the uneven pull of her breath.
She tried to meet his eyes. Looked away. Looked again.
He stepped closer.
Heat rushed through her.
Closer again, until the space between them thinned.
Her fingers loosened, then curled again. “You should…” The words formed and failed in the same breath.
She quickly reached for the glass of milk and held it out. “You should drink first.”
He glanced at it. Then at her. And smiled… amused, slow, and just a little dangerous.
He did not take it. Instead, he began removing his sherwani. One clasp. A step forward.
She stepped back. “You should… sit.”
Another clasp. Another step.
“It’s been a long day.”
The fabric loosened. He moved closer.
“You must be tired.”
The silk fell away.
Her grip tightened on the glass. “You didn’t eat much.”
He set the sherwani aside without looking. The kurta followed.
She saw him. Fully. Her breath slipped.
That glimpse in the rain had not prepared her for this. Not even close. Broad shoulders. Defined chest. Muscle drawn tight into a narrow waist. Strength no longer hidden.
He looked more… Bigger. Stronger. Real in a way she had not been ready for.
Heat climbed up her throat. She forced herself to look away, only to find her eyes returning.
He noticed.
“You should…” Her voice thinned.
He stepped forward, removing his watch.
The table met her back.
He placed the watch down.
She did not move. The glass stayed between them, though her hold on it weakened. Her breath came uneven.
He moved closer. Close enough that the warmth of him reached her before his hands did. Close enough that she felt him everywhere.
