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I sighed in frustration. Did he really not get it? "You scared me and you pissed me off. I don't like being manipulated and I don’t like being ordered around." I’d dealt with that enough from Adam.
I thought about mentioning The Never Tell Club and the article I’d read, but now didn’t feel like the time. This might be the closest he and I had come to having an equal conversation and not one where he was trying to mess with me.
His stern brow knotted as if he was trying to navigate these new waters and recalculate a new route to get to me.
"In my life," he said, clearly choosing his words carefully, "when I say what I want, it is given to me. That especially applies to women."
“Not used to a woman saying no, huh?”
His eyes darkened. “Are you saying no to me?”
“I’m saying that if you say jump, I won't be asking you how high."
He cocked his head at me and I saw there the same curious excitement that I'd seen so often in the short time since we'd first met.
“But you aren’t saying no.” Suddenly, the noise of the bar faded away, and my vision tunnelled until I saw only him. “Because you’re drawn to me, I can feel it. Despite all your reservations, you can’t stop thinking about me. I bet you think about me at your desk, while you sip your coffee. Do you think about me when you eat dinner with your family? How do you picture me when you go to bed at night?”
My chest rose and fell with shallow breaths. There were people all around us and my skin flushed wondering if they could hear him.
“I think about you too,” he admitted. “It’s bothering me more than I’d like.”
“I’m sorry to be a bother. For what it’s worth, I’m not saying no. I’m saying…” I trailed off. I felt a strange pulling sensation, his soul calling to mine. I felt like I was falling. I shook the feeling away and stood. "I’m saying I need to get back to work."
"I'll take you." He stepped around the table and I immediately stepped back out of his reach.
"I can walk. Rosie’s is only ten minutes away."
"For God's sake, why can't you just—" He clenched his jaw together, forcing himself not to let the rest of his frustration out. I wondered what he'd do next. Throw me over his shoulder? Cause a scene? He bit his tongue and took a breath. He was recalculating again.
"Please will you allow me to drive you back to work?" he asked as calmly as he could.
I looked over at Keira who was flirting outrageously with snooker guy. She caught my eye and waved goodbye to me. Itwas the middle of the day and she'd be leaving soon to get back to work so I had no qualms about leaving her here by herself.
"Alright," I agreed. “Thank you." The relief on his face was so sincere, I felt myself soften despite yesterday's shit show.
I bit my lip as his hand snaked around my waist, a clear sign of his possession. I couldn't help the feeling that I'd just opened up a huge can of worms.
His car was a work of art.
I'd never cared much for cars, especially fancy ones, but this one was truly beautiful.
His hand stayed firmly about my waist as he leaned down to open the door for me. He took my hand and eased me down into the smooth leather.
Mr Tell folded himself into the driver’s seat and looked over at me as he revved the engine with the excitement of a little boy.
"You like?" he asked, his playful smile catching me off guard.
"Surprisingly, yes."
"Fancy a drive?"
"I can't. I really do have to get back to work. With Mark being away there's twice as much for me to do." I expected him to argue and was surprised when he didn’t.
"Rain check then.”
He pulled out into the traffic, completely oblivious to the envious stares we attracted from the pedestrians. I wondered what it must be like to be so used to being surrounded by jealousy that you didn't even notice it any more.
His hand rested firmly on my thigh as he drove and my body tensed, all of my senses jumping to high alert. His skin burned mine through the thin material of my sundress and I had to fightto sit still. When I glanced up at him, a knowing smile played on his lips. He knew exactly what he was doing to me.