“And you’ve done yours,” I bite back. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t know at which door to loom.”
“Is that what I’m doing? ‘Looming’?”
Focus, Mia.
Don’t get distracted by his abs, Mia.
You’ve got no cheese left to grate, Mia.
“You tell me,” I say with a nervous swallow. “You’re the one blocking me out of my apartment.”
He looks at me with a hungry glint in his eye. An intense, predatory look, the kind that makes you suddenly realize how interesting the floor between your toes is.
Slowly, he takes a step towards me. “First, I was blocking you in,” he drawls. “Now, I’m blocking you out.”
I force myself to hold his gaze. “Points for consistency, I guess.”
We stay like that for a while, in silence, just staring at each other. Waiting to see who will blink first.
Get comfortable, Mr. Lozhkin,I seethe at the back of my mind.‘Cause it sure as hell ain’t gonna be me.
Eventually, he takes a step back and concedes. Not like someone who’s lost, though—like someone who’s got much bigger games to play.
Somehow, it gets even more on my nerves.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” he asks.
“No.” I cross my arms and plant myself in front of my door. “Whatever you have to say to me, you can say it right here.”
“It’s cute that you think a locked door could stop me.”
“It’s cute that you think I’ll let you in where my kid sleeps.”
His lips twitch again with that quicksilver smile. I hate that he’s getting a laugh out of it. Out ofme.It makes me want to fist that perfect shirt and scratch those perfect abs and?—
Nope.Wrong train of thought.
Still, the sentiment stands.
Eventually, Yulian plucks a manila envelope from under his arm. I was so preoccupied with him, I hadn’t even noticed it.
“Read,” he says, with the calm confidence of a man who expects to be obeyed.
Warily, I take the file.
My eyes narrow as I scan it, but every word I read pries them wider. At one point, I’m convinced it must be a prank. Yulian doesn’t seem the type to clown around, but who knows? Maybe he’s secretly a big joker.
Or maybe I’m the clown.
“This is a contract,” I blink.
“An astute observation.”
“To be yourfake fiancée.”
“Again, glad to see your reading skills are up to the task.”
I grind my teeth into dust. God, what I wouldn’t give to just grab his face and—and—urgh!
