Page 35 of Scarred Ruin

“Oh, definitely with everything.”

As soon as she left, he folded his arms on the table, never blinking as he studied me. “Only the best.”

A quiet moment passed with neither one of us knowing what to say. Yet there were times when words weren’t necessary. This was one of them. The butterflies had another thought in mind, pushing me to find my voice.

“You come here often.”

“This happens to be one of Mina’s favorite restaurants. They treat her like a princess.”

I mirrored his action, leaning across so that the wind carried his scent and every feature on his face was easy to enjoy. “As they should. Did she like the stuffed toy?”

Before he could answer, the cold beers arrived. “You do understand what you did. Don’t you?”

“What exactly did I do?”

“Made being around her insufferable.”

“Then I guess you’re going to need to take her to the shelter and find her perfect dog.”

“Why not a reputable breeder? I found one online.”

Almost as soon as I launched into all the reasons why he should adopt and not shop, I sensed he was playing with me.

“You are terrible,” I tossed out as I grabbed my beer.

“There is nothing sexier than a woman with fire in her eyes.”

Speaking of which. In the waning afternoon light, his blue eyes appeared almost black and they were utterly beautiful. Dangerous men like Maxsim Aristov had no business being so handsome. The trouble was he knew how good looking he was and just how many women would give anything to change places with me.

While I’d detected arrogance early on, I also realized just now that he couldn’t care less about garnering attention. He simply tolerated it.

Yes, I was attracted to him, but his comment was the perfect reminder that dinner didn’t mean anything except two people sharing a meal. And that I needed to remain indifferent to his charm.

“I have fire in my fingertips as well, Maxsim. And some would say in my heart.”

“You don’t like compliments.”

“No,” I corrected. “I don’t like bullshit.”

“Is that what I’m doing?”

“I think you will use whatever tactic necessary to get what you want. If you can’t simply take it, you’ll resort to something less intrusive.”

He pulled his bottle to his lips while keeping his dark eyes locked on mine. Was he trying to figure out what made me tick? Because if he was, he’d need to dig through several layers.

While I prided myself in being upfront with people, that didn’t mean I wouldn’t do everything to protect myself.

“You’re anticipating I’m going to take you, as if you’re a possession?” His question was one of true curiosity. He took a long pull on his beer and I was unable to keep from watching the way his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.

Even that was sexy.

However, he was pushing my buttons on purpose, something else that annoyed me.

I found myself leaning further. Normally I’d be thoroughly annoyed by any man acting as if he could best me in a volley of words. Not with this man. Should I be concerned I found him even sexier up close?

A warmth spread through my legs, the deep core throbbing already becoming an issue. I’d stood in front of the bathroom mirror chanting a mantra about not allowing either his suave grab for power or his penchant for making me swoon to knock me off my game.

Here I was thinking about how incredible it would feel if his head was between my legs, his tongue fucking my pussy.