Page 28 of Auctioned to My Bratva Boss

Damn it, I was about to come! I tried hard to push his hand away, but it was useless. I couldn't fight him.

"Going to come already?" His whisper was only for us.

My belly churned into a knot. I nodded helplessly.

"Bad girl. You got my fingers wet in front of all these people. I'm not letting you off that easy."

Chapter Eight

Riley

"I'm not letting you off that easily."

The second those words left his mouth, he pulled his fingers out without hesitation.

"Let's call it a day." He stood, shoving that hand into his suit pocket. "Send the new designs to my email as soon as possible."

Then he walked straight out of the conference room.

Like nothing had happened.

The emptiness hit me all at once, that feeling like falling from a cliff into nothing—I hadn't even come, and he just left.

"Yes, sir." The head designer called after him.

My body melted into the seat. I didn't understand why he wouldn't let me finish. Just because I got wet from his touch?

"You okay? You look pale." The moment Matvey disappeared through the door, Adrian leaned over. "I can't believe Bykov actually asked for your input."

I gave him a weak smile. Yeah, well, there's a lot he doesn't know about...

"I'm fine. Just caught off guard." I steadied myself against the table as I stood.

Employees filed out of the conference room one by one.

My legs felt like jelly. Gradually, I fell behind. Adrian slowed down to wait for me.

"I was wondering if maybe you pissed off the boss or something!" When I caught up to him, he rubbed his chin between his thumb and forefinger. "He never calls on us little people to answer questions."

Honestly, I'd wondered the same thing.

"But hey, you actually got through a whole sentence sitting next to that iceberg... Trust me, almost nobody can do that."

"You're exaggerating!" I laughed despite myself, some of the tension easing.

He was funny. Whenever I passed by his department, I could usually hear him laughing.

"I'm serious, Riley. And what you said back there was brilliant!" Adrian grinned, his eyes almost admiring. "Don't worry, you've got real talent!"

I exhaled, the knot of disappointment and anxiety slowly loosening—thanks to Adrian.

"Please. I was shaking the whole time." I shrugged. "Let's hope that doesn't happen too often, or I'll have a nervous breakdown."

We walked side by side, and he suddenly pulled two coffee capsules from his pocket.

"Want one?" He raised an eyebrow, miming a toast.

If we weren't in the office, I'd swear he was about to offer me something strong.