P l e a s u r e

23 - Let me

If he had opened the door just a moment later, I would have definitely run away, but now I had no chance, as my legs completely weakened from him standing there in front of me with his bare upper body. My eyes traveled from his chest, through his abs, down to the elastic band of his underwear, which peeked out from his sweatpants and perfectly hugged his muscles.

He came closer and leaned against the door frame, then tilted his head to the side to make eye contact with me. - "Are you planning to stand here all night like an idiot?" - he broke the silence in his usual annoying tone, raising his eyebrows.

"Watch your mouth, Perceval." - I warned him.

"I'd like to watch YOU finally coming in." - his voice was filled with frustration.

"I don't know what's wrong with you, but you should definitely start behaving more kindly to me." - I stepped closer to him - "It seems like you forgot I'm your only option tonight." - I reminded him with a serious expression, then headed inside the room.

As I walked past him, the door slammed shut, and he grabbed my wrist to stop me from going any further. I was already tired of him, so I was just wating for his next move without turning back.

He slowly came closer to me, his chest almost touching my back. His grip softened on my wrist, then his hand slowly moved up my arm, brushing my skin with his fingertips. Reaching my shoulders, he gathered my hair and pulled it to one side, exposing my neck.

"Let me tell you something, ma chérie." - he said, then leaned close to my ear.

As I felt his warm breath on my skin, I got shivers down my spine.

"I have other options. A lot of." - he lowered his voice as he gently caressed the area behind my ear with the tip of his nose. - "But nothing gives me greater pleasure than seeing you unable to resist me, despite your hatred." - he whispered, then put a tender kiss on my neck.

His lips felt like he was touching me for the first time and my body was ready to completely surrender to him.

However, my mind didn't cooperate, despite my attempts to convince myself that this is what I need and why I came.

For long seconds, I just stood there, trying to enjoy what he was doing. He was intense and hungry; I could feel that every fiber of his being wanted me. Or anyone else who might be in my place right now.

Suddenly, he grabbed my neck forcefully to pull me closer which made me let out a sharp gasp as I reached for his hand, still feeling the bruise I got in Carlos's car.

He was the last person I wanted to think about right now, not to mention what happened at the university. My life is a fucking mess right now.

In that moment, he stopped what he was doing. - "Are you okay?" - he asked, sighing heavily.

"Yeah, totally." - I tried to respond confidently, but it couldn't have been further from the truth.

"Great." - he said, then buried his face in my neck again, reaching for the zipper of my skirt.

I wrestled with my thoughts, but finally I took a deep breath, then turned around to look him in the eye. - "I think I'm going home now." - I said, trying to sound determined, though there was a hint of uncertainty in my voice.

"Is this some kind of game?" - he quietly chuckled while furrowing his eyebrows in confusion.

I didn't respond, just lowered my eyes. Then, after a little pause, I took a step to the side to head towards the door, but in that moment, he also did the same, blocking my way.

"What's wrong?" - his tone became serious, realizing that I indeed want to go home.

"Nothing." - I shrugged - "I just changed my mind and don't wanna have sex." -  I said pretending it's not a big deal, then tried to bypass him.

He stepped in front of me again and grabbed both of my shoulders, preventing me from walking away. - "I did something bad?" - he leaned down to establish eye contact with me. I saw him notice the bruise on my neck and for a moment, he even seemed startled that he might have caused me pain.

"No, absolutely not. You didn't do anything." - I cut in quickly before he delved too deeply into it. - "I just want to leave, that's it." - I tried to stay calm as I grabbed his wrist to remove his hand from me.

"First, tell me what's wrong." - he squeezed even tighter, making it impossible for me to push him away.

"I told you it's nothing. Just let me go." - the rage started to build up in me, and I began to tug at his hand to break free.

"I won't, until you tell me." - he said firmly, unmoved by my attempts to break free. - "You're not usually like this, I know there's something."

"What do you mean I'm not usually like this? Are you implying that I usually act like a whore or what the hell?" - I retorted.

"Oh my god, no, not at all. I never said anything like that." - he tried to explain, still not letting go.

"You can't handle the fact that someone doesn't want to sleep with you, right?" - I snapped back at him.

"I don't give a shit about that. I just wanna know what's going on with you." - a convincing expression formed on his face, and I slowly began to believe that he really meant it, but I didn't want to give in.

After a few more unsuccessful attempts, however, I had to admit that I had no chance against him, and it was pointless for me to keep trying.

"There's just a lot happening in my life, and I don't have the energy for these games between us right now." - I spoke as calmly as I could in this situation to close the subject, as discussing my problems was the last thing I wanted. Expecially with him.

"Why, what's happening?" - he asked immediately, making it clear he didn't want to leave the matter at that.

"I don't want a therapy session, thank you." - I said nonchalantly.

"Yet I can confidently say that you could use one." - he pointedly remarked, waiting for me to admit that he was right.

"I'll keep that in mind." - I gave him a fake smile - "Could you please step aside now?"

"Listen, Milla, I know that this thing between us is very unconventional." - his voice softened - "But I'm here if..."

"Don't act like you care. I don't need your pity, Leclerc." - I interrupted, finally able to push his hands away.

"Okay, if you don't want to tell me, you don't have to, I get it." - he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender while taking a step back - "But at least stay for dinner. You've only just arrived."

His offer caught me off guard, and suddenly, I didn't know how to react; I just stared at him with furrowed brows.

"I promise I won't touch you or pry into your problems." - he placed his hand over his chest to emphasize his promise. - "It's just dinner."

I wanted to instinctively reject his offer, but on one hand, I forgot to eat properly in the past fewdays, and on the other hand, as he started to look at me with puppy eyes, my heart softened, and I found myself unable to say no. - "What are we having?" - I asked after a moment of hesitation, causing his mouth to light up immediately.