Page 138 of Symphony for Lies

“What are you doing here?” My voice was sharper than I intended, but he only smirked.

That smirk. The one that promised trouble. The one that made my knees feel unsteady.

“I bought the building.”

I blinked. “What?”

“And now, I’m your new neighbor.”

A heatwave ran over my body.

His gaze softened slightly, and something unspoken flickered in the depths of his eyes like he was waiting for me to say something.

“And the flowers?” His voice was deceptively light, but there was an edge beneath it.

I hesitated. “Spencer brought them over.”

“So, he was just here. And you were… dressed like that?” His possessive gaze dipped lower.

“Of course not! I changed after—” I snapped my mouth shut, realizing too late that I was playing into his hands.

His smirk deepened.

He was enjoying teasing me.

Zane leaned forward slightly, his presence intoxicating and his voice a whisper of sin.“Step back.”

Before my mind could catch up, my body obeyed.

And then, he jumped.

A sharp gasp left my lips as he landed on my balcony with effortless grace, barely making a sound.

“Are you crazy?” I glanced at the dizzying drop between our balconies.

He closed the distance between us in a single step, his breath teasing the corner of my mouth. “For you? Completely.”

I swallowed hard.

He was close. Too close.

I could feel him, the heat radiating from his body and the raw energy rolling off him in waves. It wrapped around me like an invisible tether, pulling me deeper into his gravity.

“Were you worried I’d get hurt?”

I scoffed, but the sound barely came out.

His gaze darkened, dragging over my lips, down my throat, and lower as if he were memorizing me.

“Zane,” I warned.

He tilted his head, exuding nothing but pure, unshakable confidence.

“You could’ve just used the front door,” I tried, hating how breathless I sounded.

“Where’s the thrill if I do?” He was silk and smoke, the kind of thing that tangled around you before you even realized you were caught.

The space between us had disappeared without me noticing.

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