Page 62 of His Forced Irish Mafia Bride

I held her gaze. She didn’t look away. Instead, she stepped closer to the desk.

“Do you know what I see when I look at you lately?” she asked. I didn’t answer. She continued anyway. “Control that’s shaking. You’re becoming a weakling.” A pause. Then, quieter, “And you don’t even notice that it’s happening.”

I exhaled once through my nose. “Is that why you’re here?” I said. “To analyze me?”

“No,” she replied. “I’m here because Anton is moving faster than your patience for distractions can afford.”

That word again.Distractions. My jaw tightened slightly. She noticed.

“While you’re playing lover boy, Anton is placing the calvary. She affects your timing.” I didn’t respond. Gabrielle watched me for a moment longer, then shifted tone again, like she was changing angles rather than topics. “Take me to dinner,” she said suddenly. That made me look at her properly. She wasn’t kidding. “I want to see something,” she continued.

“See what?”

Her eyes stayed on mine. “How far it goes,” she said. “When she knows I’m in the same room as you.”

The silence after that was heavier. I didn’t answer immediately. Not because I was surprised. Because I was measuring what she was actually asking for.

“Why,” I said finally.

She smiled again. “Because you didn’t deny me,” she said. “Not properly.”

I didn’t correct her. I just looked at her. And for the first time, she didn’t look like she was trying to win something. She looked like she was testing what I’d already lost control of.

My head was spinning as I thought about it. Why was I even thinking about the idea? It would probably cause a lot of problems for me, even if it proved I wasn’t distracted by Maeve. I shook my head, trying to get back in control of my thoughts.The room felt suffocating. The air was thick with tension that I couldn’t quite explain.

Before I could say anything more, Gabrielle moved. She jumped at me without any warning, landing in my lap. Her arms wrapped tightly around my neck as her lips met mine in an eager kiss. I stiffened in shock. She kissed me deeper, her body pressing close, warm and insistent. My mind was screaming at me to slow down. She yanked off her shirt and tossed it aside. I could barely think about what was happening. The rush of her breath, the softness of her skin…it was overwhelming.

My heart was racing fast. Part of me knew that this was a mistake. Another part of me was swept up in the moment she’d created. I stopped thinking as her hands roamed and her kisses got more passionate. The world narrowed, the couch creaking faintly beneath our weight, and everything else faded into the background.

Then, as if it was timed perfectly to mess with me, the door swung open. Maeve stepped inside with folders in her arms, and her casual smile froze when she saw us. The shock on her face hit me like cold water. Gabrielle reacted fast. She jumped off my lap and wrapped her arms around her chest. My face burned as I sat there, stunned, trying to make sense of the chaos that had just happened. The silence was thick and uncomfortable.

Gabrielle looked at me wide-eyed before turning to Maeve. “Oops.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Maeve

I should have kept walking. That was the first thought that hit me after I left his office. Not Gabrielle or Sean. Not even what I’d seen.

It was the simple fact that I should have turned around the second I realized the door was closed and whatever was happening inside had nothing to do with me. Instead, I’d opened the door. And now I couldn’t seem to stop replaying it. I stopped in front of the elevator, which didn’t open for me.

I barely noticed. My reflection stared back from the polished metal.

I looked irritated. Good. I preferred that.

Anger was easier to carry. The other thing pressing against my ribs felt far less manageable. I folded my arms tightly and looked away. The image returned anyway.

Gabrielle on Sean’s lap, the distance between them, or rather the lack of it. The way she’d looked completely comfortable being there. That was the part that kept coming back.

She was comfortable, like she belonged there, like she’d done it before. Of course she’d done it before!

This was the second time I’d walked in on them. Who knew how many times they’d had sex? Why did I even care?

I turned away from the elevator and kept walking.

Every time I thought I’d pushed the scene aside, something dragged it back. The confidence in Gabrielle’s face. The fact that she hadn’t looked embarrassed. If anything, she’d looked amused. The memory made my head spin. I shoved my hands into my pockets. This was ridiculous. Completely ridiculous.

Sean could do whatever he wanted. Who he spent time with was none of my business. Who he kissed was none of my business. Who he had history with was definitely none of my business.