Gie tried to distract herself.
Tried to focus on anything but the fact that Alexander Millers was in his dressing room, changing into the exact outfit she had chosen for him.
She wandered through his massive walk-in closet, her fingers lightly tracing over the edge of an impeccably organized glass display case, each compartment filled with custom accessories, luxury watches, silk ties, leather belts.
Everything was perfect, structured, carefully controlled.
Just like him.
But the space didn't feel lived in.
It felt… curated.
Like a museum for a man who had perfected the art of being untouchable.
And yet—
Tonight, she had touched him.
And he had let her.
Her heart pounded, her mind replaying that moment at dinner, the way his fingers had intertwined with hers, slow, deliberate, sensual.
She swallowed hard, her body still buzzing with the memory of it, trying to shake the heat that had settled in her bones.
Then—
The door to the dressing area opened.
And she forgot how to breathe.
The Man She Had Envisioned—Standing Before Her
Alexander stepped out, adjusting the cuffs of his navy-blue suit jacket, and—
Oh.
Oh, God.
He was perfect.
Exactly how she had imagined him.
No—worse.
Because seeing him like this, seeing him step into the image she had created in her mind, was something else entirely.
The navy-blue suit framed his body like sin, the crisp, black dress shirt underneath unbuttoned just enough to reveal the hint of his collarbone, his throat taut and strong.
The platinum watch rested effortlessly on his wrist, understated but undeniably powerful.
And the earring—
The earring she had made, the one she had obsessed over, the one she had crafted just for him—gleamed softly in the warm lighting, catching against his dark-blond hair as he moved.
She felt her knees buckle.
Her stomach twisted painfully.
Because he looked exactly how she had wanted him to look.
Exactly how she had designed him to be.
And it was doing things to her.
Heat licked at her spine, curling between her legs, making her pulse drum in her throat.
Her mouth was so dry, but at the same time, her whole body felt liquid, melting under the sheer presence of him.
She wanted to say something.
Wanted to act normal, professional, unaffected.
But all that came out was—
"…Oh."
Alexander's gray eyes flickered with amusement.
"That's all?" he murmured. "Just oh?"
She struggled to find words.
"You— I— It—" She exhaled sharply, forcing her gaze anywhere but at him. "It suits you."
His lips curved.
"I thought you'd say that."
Then—he moved.
"Put Them on Me."
He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out the cufflinks she had designed.
He stepped forward, closing the distance between them until he was just close enough for her to feel the heat radiating off him.
He held them out to her.
"Put them on me."
Gie's breath stuttered.
Her fingers twitched at her sides, her body already screaming at her to run before she did something incredibly stupid.
The way he said it—low, smooth, deliberate—wasn't a request.
It was a command.
And she?
She was helpless to resist.
She took the cufflinks with shaky hands, her fingers brushing against his as she did.
Electricity snapped through her body.
Her lips parted slightly, a slow exhale escaping her before she could stop it.
His gray eyes didn't miss it.
He lifted his hands, holding out his wrists for her.
Gie swallowed hard.
Slowly, carefully, she reached for his left sleeve, undoing the button with trembling hands before sliding the cufflink into place.
She should have been focused on the task.
But her mind betrayed her.
Because his wrist was warm.
Because she could feel the slow pulse beneath his skin.
Because the scent of him—spice, leather, something dark and addictive—was filling her lungs, making her feel drunk on just his presence.
She secured the first one, then moved to the other.
But this time—
When she reached for his wrist, his fingers caught hers.
Her heart stopped.
His thumb dragged over the inside of her wrist, a slow, intentional stroke that sent fire straight through her veins.
Gie's whole body went tight, heat coiling low in her stomach, pooling between her thighs.
This—this was not normal.
This was not professional.
This was something else.
Something dangerous.
The air between them shifted, thickened, the silence no longer just a pause in conversation—
But something charged.
Something on the verge of breaking.
Her breath came out shaky, uneven, her lips parting as her mind filled with images she shouldn't be thinking.
Of his hands elsewhere.
Of them gripping her hips.
Of them sliding over her skin, pinning her wrists above her head, making her beg—
Her thighs pressed together instinctively.
And that was when she realized—
She was wet.
He Knows.
Her face burned, mortification crawling up her throat.
Because the way Alexander was looking at her?
Like he could hear her thoughts.
Like he knew exactly what she was imagining.
Like he could feel her unraveling without even touching her fully.
His fingers lingered on her wrist, a ghost of a touch, before finally releasing her.
Gie sucked in a sharp breath, blinking herself back to reality, back to sanity.
The cufflinks were on.
The moment was over.
Or at least—it should have been.
But it wasn't.
Because Alexander?
He was still watching her.
Still standing too close, still looking at her like she was something he was slowly unraveling—
And worst of all?
She was letting him.