Page 69 of Hostile Rival
Instinctively, I know he’s different, and I want to hug him for it. But I won’t.
He shoves his legs into gray sweats, pulls a fresh t-shirt over his head and puts on a pair of designer sneakers. The clean white top makes his skin darker, and his biceps seem to pop. He ruffles his bangs with long fingers to fix his hair, his eyes all over me. My heart skips and I sway a little, still weak, a bit woozy, and completely infatuated with him.
“Thank Sinéad for her hospitality.” I hold his gaze, my stance solid. “I appreciate it. And I’d prefer it if no one finds out I stayed here.”
When I move to the doorway, the annoying clapping against the soles of my feet bugs me. How come he gets to wear sneakers and I havethese? Rather than make a discreet exit, I’d alert everyone in the Souza mansion that I’m leaving.
I don’t need a farewell party where we’d pretend this unusual setup is a truce, or that I’ve forgiven them for what I went through. I haven’t and never will.
So, I kick off the flip-flops, forgetting myself as I bend over to pick them up.
Pain spreads through my torso at lightning speed. I suck in, jerk upright and force myself to breathe through the agony.
“Christ, Dani.” Matheus stalks closer, stops right in front of me, clenches his fists as if he’s trying not to touch me and glares at my wounded side. “You ready to get back into bed yet? It doesn't have to be this way, you know.”
“Don’t make this any harder than it needs to be.”
His eyebrows pop up. “Like locking the door, taking my sweet fucking time to strip your hot little body out of those clothes, then carry you to the bed, and get in beside you?” He glances downward, where the outline of his boner sits under his sweats. “Because that would make this situation rock fucking hard, little firecracker.”
A pulse flutters between my legs. “You know that’s a bad idea, because if you try to trap me in this bedroom, I’ll kill you with one of these stupid flip-flops.”
His cheek dimples when a slow, seductive smile tugs the corners of his lips. Amusement looks good on him.
“Now that…that I’d love to see. If you weren’t injured and full of strong pain meds, I’d take you up on the challenge.”
“Matheus.” I chide, unable to hide my smirk. “It’s an insignificant cut, like the one you had on your leg. Remember?”
He shakes his head, fully smiling now. “I remember a naughty little nurse kneeling before me. She had pretty silver eyes and warm hands. Even back then, I wanted to kiss you.”
“Lucky you didn’t,” I retort, the amusement leaving my voice. “I would have stabbed you in the neck with the scissors.”
We stand in silence for a few racing heart beats, just staring at each other and breathing.
“I don’t want to be here,” I mutter.
And I don’t. Had we been face to face anywhere else in the world, maybe I would have stepped into him and slid my handsunder his t-shirt just to feel his skin next to mine. “Can you please move out of my way?”
He nods slowly, angles to the door, and grabs the handle. “After you, little firecracker.”
When I walk into a sunny corridor filled with closed doors, windows, and oil paintings, I sense him prowling behind me. It’s not a threatening presence that makes me feel uncomfortable, rather it does the opposite.
A few months ago, I never would have believed I’d feel safe with a Souza.
Angry at myself for letting this happen, I do a swift one-eighty and blink away the dancing blobs in my vision.
“You don't need to follow me. I’m not armed. Your family doesn't need to worry about me creeping around their house.”
He looks at the ceiling and then drops his chestnut gaze to mine, burning me with its intensity. “Maybe I’m an asshole…but my instincts tell me to trust you, otherwise you wouldn’t be here. I’m escorting you off the premises to make sure you don’t faint or get lost. You were out of it when I carried you to my room and this place has an east wing, west wing, and a whole other monster building at the rear.”
I frown. “Your room?”
“Yeah.” He shrugs. “We all have our own suites. Makes it easier when we visit.”
“Oh, wonderful. This just gets better. So, they know we’ve had sex and assumed we’d share a bed?”
Matheus rakes a hand through his hair, pulling the messy bangs back off his brow. “I didn’t tell them anything, Dani. Did you?”
My eyes roll. “But they thought I’d want to stay in your bed?”
