Page 17 of Secret Bratva Baby
“Liar.”
“I’m not lying.”
It’s becoming clearer that she’s never held a gun before. She’s never been exposed to them. That means something.
It means she’s not part of the rival group. She’s not a spy or an infiltrator or an informant. If she were, she’d have experience or training.
She’s just Rose.
I hope.
I take another step towards her, and she flinches, her finger tight on the trigger.
“Do you really want to kill me?” I ask gently.
“No, so stay back. Let us go. Let Lily and me walk out of here.”
“That would mean letting the other guys hunt you down and kill you. We’ve been through this. I’m not willing to put you in that kind of danger. You or your daughter.”
There it is.
The flicker of doubt in her eyes. Her face softens.
Now is my chance.
I don’t waste a second. Snapping my hand forward, I grab her wrist and twist it so that she’s forced to spin around and let go of the Glock. It drops to the floor, and I kick it away from us.
I drag her back, right against my body, so that she’s locked against my chest, my arms around her. She lets out a sharp squeal of fright, trying to elbow me in the ribs, but she’s so tightly wrapped in my arms that she can hardly move.
“Just stand still, dammit,” I huff, trying to control her wiggling, her back pressed against my body. The heat of her skin soaks into me.
Her scent drifts over me, and her soft hair brushes over my naked chest. The groan that escapes me is an accident.
I take in a sharp breath, trying to force myself to focus, but it’s nearly impossible with her this close to me.
I hesitate and release her, just slightly, and she doesn’t step away immediately.
Instead, she turns to look at me, her body still against mine.
She tilts her head up, her eyes wide and glittering with the threat of tears.
“Why did you push me away?” she says, so softly I almost don’t hear her.
I narrow my eyes, wondering why she would ask that.
“All those years ago,” she whispers. “You pushed me away.”
Oh.
“I-I—I—" I stammer, my eyes locked onto her face, studying her beautiful features. My heart is racing.
I could just lean down and kiss her. It would be so easy, and I don’t think she’d stop me, not with the way her eyes are drifting over my mouth. Her lips part as she takes in a breath.
Kiss her. She wants you too.
I press my lips together, reaching my hand up to brush my fingers over her back. I trace the delicate shape of her spine.
She shivers against me, still not moving away.
