Kova slowly stepped toward me, eyeing my fingers that gripped his frame. “I caught a view of the sunset as I was walking back and stopped to look at it.”
He lifted a brow and waited for more. “And?”
“And...And I saw a picture of Katja.” Fuck. I was scared.
“Keep going?” His voice was low. “Were you snooping around my office? This is a very private picture of her for my eyes only. Who said you could just waltz right in here?”
He was goading me, but with every right. I was in his personal space. “I wasn’t snooping, I swear. I just happened to see the photo on the bookshelf. Then I saw this one on your desk and wanted to see it.”
I glanced down at the frame clutched to my chest and pulled it back. Handing it to him, I apologized.
“I didn’t mean to be nosey. I’ve just never seen photos like these before.”
“They were a gift.”
Confused, I asked, “What was?”
“The photos, they are boudoir photos taken by a local photographer. Katja gave them to me on our second anniversary. At first I fumed she would let someone photograph her in hardly anything, but once I cooled down, I found the photos alluring.”
This was getting strange, and I wasn’t sure how to respond. It was one thing to talk about his life and his mom, but not about Katja and how alluring her photos were. Kova stared lovingly at the frame while I stood awkwardly next to him. I felt like I was invading on his moment. “She really is beautiful,” was all I could think of to say.
Hard eyes snapped to mine. Kova loomed over me and stared down. His eyes traveled down my face, pausing on my lips. His jaw flexed as he exhaled. The throbbing vein in his neck caught my attention, it was beating as fast as my heart.
Tension swirled and the air thickened as his gaze landed on my chest. Only the tension wasn’t like it was with him and Katja. Sensuality was woven around us and it changed the whole dynamic. I wore a white, low scoop neck shirt with a push-up bra that gave me heavy, supple cleavage. It wasn’t often I wore clothes other than a leotard, so I took extra time getting dressed, carefully picking out my outfit. I wanted to look better than all the other girls combined.
The room grew hot as the weight of his stare was felt on every inch of my skin. This wasn’t the first time an older man had stared at me, I’d met some men who were acquaintances of my dad’s, but this was different.
Everything a woman could want in a man, Kova had it in spades. The perfect body, the perfect face, a successful business, goal driven. And no matter what I did, I couldn’t get him out of my mind. He was tall, dark, and handsome. And the more he stared at me, the more I found myself liking it...wanting more of his attention.
Kova took one small step toward me and my lips parted. I could hear my heart thumping loudly in my ears as my chest rose faster with each breath I took.
“Kova,” I whispered. “What are you thinking about?”
He swallowed and said hoarsely, “Things I should not be.”
My stomach tightened, my panties suddenly wet from the raspy sound of his voice, it rumbled in a deep baritone. Rolling my lip between my teeth, I tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “What do you mean?”
He groaned low under his breath. “Do not do that.”
“Do what?”
“Look at me the same way I am looking at you.”
My heart was pounding so loud I wondered if he could hear it.
“You are blushing.”
“You know, that only makes me blush more,” I whispered.
One more step closer, and we were almost touching. “I like the way it tints your skin.” The back of his hand grazed my flushed cheek. “You know, you are just as beautiful. If not, more. Gorgeous.”
A little gasp escaped my lips. My heart raced a mile a minute, my fingers trembled. Kova called me gorgeous.
Dropping his hand, he looked down at the picture frame and then back to me with remorse in his eyes. “I am sorry I made you rip so badly on bars that day...I have felt terrible ever since.” And then he turned, and walked out of his office, leaving me speechless.
What in the ever loving fuck just happened?
Once I caught my breath, I left Kova’s office and walked toward the formal dining room. My head was spinning and I needed some fresh air.