LILIANA
I drop the brush in a small bowl of water with a sound of triumph. Another completed project. “So beautiful,” I coo.
The air shifts and suddenly, every inch of me is is hyperaware of him. The heat radiating off his skin. The faint scent of cedar and smoke mixing together like an alluring elixir with his masculine scent.
His voice drops low and dangerous. “Is that what you see when you look at me? Beauty?”
My heart begins a wild pounding rhythm I can't control. “I see a lot of things,” I whisper, almost unable to get the words out.
Wait, hold on! Why is my tongue so loose this morning?
He's close now. So close I can feel his breath against my cheek. His fingers reach for my chin and ever so softly, he turns my face towards him. “Tell me.”
“You—” He doesn't give me a chance
