Defiant. Sweet. Alluring.
A business deal gone wrong brought me to her doorstep.
She's everything I shouldn't want; everything I was against after watching my mother's obsession destroy her.
Still, I can't stop myself from craving her.
I should know...
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"STOP!"
I jumped out of my seat, taking the tray out of Giselle's hands as she approached me.
Her smile faltered. "What? Did I do something wrong?"
"Not at all!" I guided her to a chair, waiting until she took her seat before I placed the tray on the coffee table. "I'd rather you not stress yourself because of me. You're pregnant."
She huffed out a laugh. "Oh, that. You're just as dramatic as Niko, if not worse. Scratch that. No one is as dramatic as him." She looked down at her stomach. "It's just a tiny bump. I don't get why everyone is freaking out."
"Niko is right. You are carrying a human inside of you. You need to rest."
"Well, according to the doctors, doing some cardio here and there doesn't hurt."
"How many times did you go over that argument with Niko?"
She groaned, throwing her head back against the couch. "Five and still counting. He won't listen to the professionals. God, he's grating on my nerves these days."
I offered her a soft smile. "He's just worried because he loves you. Give my cousin a little break."
She returned my smile. "Oh, I know. He's just a tad bit annoying at times."
"That we can agree on." I poured myself a cup of tea. "Do you want some?" I asked Giselle.
She shook her head at me. "I'm fine." Her eyes lit up out of the blue and she smiled at me. "How's Aleksei doing? I heard things are going too well between you two. Called it, by the way."
I choked on my tea, spilling liquid everywhere.
Giselle winced as I reached for paper towels on the table to wipe my mess. "Wasn't I supposed to know about that? Sorry. Niko tells me everything that he deems to not be incriminating, so he told me. I can tell him not to next time!"
I waved her off, sipping from the glass of water on the tray. "It's fine. You don't have to tell him that. I was just caught off-guard."
"Okay?"
I chuckled at the doubt written all over her face. "I'm sure, Giselle."
Her smile returned, and her shoulders relaxed. "Okay, good! Because I want to hear every single detail about you and Aleksei. I think he has a crush on you, but it wouldn't hurt to hear it from the horse's mouth."
I cleared my throat, picking the imaginary lint off my leggings. "That's actually why I'm here. I have something on my mind, and I feel like you're the only one I know, who can help or offer insight."
"Oh. I'm glad you thought of me, and of course, I'll help as much as I can." Her eyes scanned my body in one quick move. "Are you hurt?"
I shook my head. "Not at all. It's nothing like that. Aleksei would never hurt me."
