Alessio had moved his leg closer and now his thigh was touching mine.
I gripped the spoon harder before putting it back in the bowl and quickly stepping away.
“Thank you, Ayla,” he said, his voice smooth.
Feeling slightly flustered, I nodded and then walked away. The rest of lunch went smoothly. Alessio didn’t call me again and he didn’t look at me.
When everyone dispersed, I could finally breathe normally.
“Woah, babe. That was…” Maddie began. “Intense.”
I didn’t disagree.
***
I was balancing the last tray in my hand, as I quickly swiped the dining table with the other.
I straightened up and walked away from the table. I glanced down at my dress and noticed the little dirty spot.
I was still looking down when I crashed into a hard wall of muscles. My eyes widened when I felt myself falling backward.
I yelled out, trying to gain my footing again, but I was quickly going down. Closing my eyes tightly, I waited for my body to come in contact with the ground. But it never did.
Instead, an arm wrapped around my waist, holding me still. With my heart in my throat, I opened my eyes.
Alessio.
My body was dipped backward but he was holding me firmly to his chest.
“Careful there. You need to watch where you are going,” he said.
My heart stuttered and a shiver went through my body at his voice. Biting on my lips nervously, I nodded my head. My brain was a mess whenever he was near and no matter how hard I tried to understand why, I couldn’t.
I looked at his arm around me and then remembered what he said in my room. My forehead creased in confusion. “You aren’t supposed to touch me,” I said.
He just saved me from falling flat on my butt and I didn’t even thank him.
Alessio’s chest rumbled with laughter and I saw his eyes twinkling mischievously. Oh no. I didn’t like that look.
“Oops,” he said.
And then I was on the floor. The tray fell out of my hand and crashed.
“Ow,” I said when my hips hit the tiles painfully.
Holding the aching part, I looked up at Alessio in shock.
“My bad. I forgot,” he said, his lips pulling up into a smirk.
He brought his hands up to his shoulders in mock surrender, as if showing me that he wasn’t touching me anymore.
Jerk. An absolute jerk.
He gave me a nod and then walked away, leaving me baffled on the floor. He could have at least pulled me up straight, instead of just dropping me.
But that wasn’t the case.
Grabbing the tray in my hand, I got up but then winced at the soreness in my hips. I was pretty sure it was going to bruise tomorrow. I glanced at Alessio’s retreating back and huffed in frustration.
When I walked into the kitchen, I saw Maddie filling the dishwasher. She turned around and frowned at my sour look. “What’s wrong?”
“Is Alessio always this frustrating?” I asked, placing the tray on the counter.
“You just realized that now?” She let out a laugh. “Yes, he is.”
I was still rubbing my hips and Maddie noticed. She pointed at my hand and asked, “So what happened?”
Releasing a heavy and tired sigh, I sank down on the stool. “It’s…a long story.”
“Does it involve Alessio?”
I nodded and her lips stretched in a wide, excited smile. Running toward me, she pulled another stool and sat down in front of me. “Okay. We have plenty of time. Hurry. Tell me.”
Starting from the beginning was the best option. Only then would it make sense. “It started on the first day that I came here.”
I told about how Alessio threatened to shoot me if I didn’t tell him who I was. I told her about Alessio’s options. I also told her about the kiss and the orgasm he gave me. And then I told her about this morning.
Maddie had interrupted me a lot and freaked out tons of times. “Damn…just damn…what? I don’t…you…how.…How could you not tell me this before?” Grabbing my shoulders, she shook me. “Ayla, this is big. Like big. You can’t keep something like that from me! Oh my God, he kissed you? Gave you an orgasm? Oh my God!”
“Maddie, calm down,” I said, pushing her away. She sat back down on her stool but her knees were bouncing.
“Okay, I’m calm,” she said and then paused. A few seconds passed and then she shook her head. “No. I’m not.”
“Maddie, it was nothing. He was rude. I can’t believe he would do that, but he promised he won’t touch me again. So that’s good, right?”
Maddie stared at me blankly and then burst out laughing. “You are funny. You really think he is not going to touch you? Babe, he might not touch you, but he will find other ways. And he will most definitely find ways to make you beg for him. What can I say? He is very resourceful.”