Page 79 of Gamble with Me

"Don't tell me you’ve never done it." I approached him, standing on the other side and watching him closely. "You’ve never dreamt about someone else while you've been with another?"

"It happened to me once." He leaned into his seat, placing his hands on the armrests. His eyes were glued to my face as if he found it oddly fascinating. "I almost threw up from my disgusting behavior. The woman I craved wasn't the one with me, and it felt like an awful betrayal even when we weren't together."

"You felt bad because you were ‘unfaithful’to the woman you wanted but didn't have?" I asked, confusion filling my chest. I wasn't sure if I understood him correctly.

"Yes, Valeria," he confirmed, his voice dropping an octave and sending delicious shivers up my spine. "I haven’t been with another since that dreadful experience."

"And with her?" I asked in a breathless whisper, unsure why I asked at all. It wasn't my business to question him about his privacy, but my heart claimed otherwise. I needed to know if there was a special person in his life, even when I had no right to request the answer.

"Yes," he replied, his dark eyes piercing my poor soul. That simple word was like a blade that slashed my heart, making it bleed with pain. "She is the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with."

Inhaling a shaky breath, my chin quivered, and my entire body trembled. I didn't understand myself, my reactions, and my confused feelings. This revelation shook the ground under my feet, even when there was no relevant reason for it.

What the fuck was wrong with me?

"Won't you ask who that woman is, Valeria?" Zyon inquired, standing up.

His voice sounded like a devious whisper, but instead of scaring me, it enchanted me. My eyes were glued to his handsome face, which looked so calm and gentle—almost as if he felt sorry for me.

His fingers slowly brushed the surface of the table until they reached my hand, and the tender touch sent my mind spiraling with fantasies about him, the night texts with my stalker, and the hot, unforgettable meetings with the man I fell for.

My heart clenched, and I looked down at Zyon's tattooed fingers, which caressed the back of my hand. The touch was too familiar to be ignored. It was intimate and adoring, making my skin tingle and sing in contentment.

I raised my eyes to meet his, taken aback by the intensity of his gaze. He was merely a few inches away from me, radiating pure masculinity and dominance that always drew me to him. I opened my mouth to ask the question he clearly wanted to answer, but the door behind me slammed open with a bang, and I flinched in shock.

"Zyon!"

A cheerful, familiar voice broke the spell between us, and I abruptly turned around.

With his signature smile and hands full of envelopes, Dorian entered the office, dressed in the same clothes he wore when he confused me to the bone. Zyon was right. It wasn't Malin who played with me. It was this mischievous devil.

"You couldn't pick a better moment, right?" Zyon mumbled, walking around me with an annoyed expression. "No one taught you how to knock?” He grunted, taking envelopes from his brother. "And what is this?"

"Invitations for tomorrow's party," Dorian replied excitedly, grinning like the little boy who had just gotten a new toy. “I assumed the printer wouldn't make it, but they're done. I'll assign our people to personally deliver them to the guests because our security made it impossible to enter the private celebration without them."

"Excellent." Zyon shook his head, evidently not sharing his brother's excitement. "Why are you here, then?"

"I wanted to show them to you," Dorian replied, placing the pile on the desk and handing me one black custom-made envelope. "For you, Mrs. Kellerman. I hope to see you tomorrow."

"Thank you." I smiled, opening it and taking out thick black paper with silver engraving. I quickly scanned it, admiring the details, when I found the interesting note on the bottom.

"It's a masquerade ball?" I asked, looking at the two brothers who cast me the same devilish smile.

"We were born on Halloween night, Valeria," Dorian answered, wriggling his eyebrows. "It's only thematic to celebrate in a spooky costume."

"Spooky costume?" I repeated, laughing. "Do you expect me to come dressed like a dark witch?"

"Come dressed like a pumpkin, I don't mind," Dorian beamed, picking up the invitations. "It’s only important that you come."

He pushed half the pile into Zyon's hands, looking at him expectantly.

"We have a meeting in thirty minutes, Zyon," he said when his older brother didn't react. "The one you prompted me to set."

"I know," Zyon said, but his eyes were fixed on me. "Will you honor us with your presence at the party, Valeria?"

"If it doesn't matter what outfit I chose." I smiled, winking at Dorian, who almost bounced on his feet. I couldn't imagine having him at home. It had to cost him a lot of energy to pretend to be Zyon or Malin.

"Just don't come naked." Dorian wriggled his eyebrows mischievously, ignoring his brother's murderous glare. "We are the hosts and want to enjoy the attention."