He steps closer, his presence overwhelming, his eyes never leaving mine. “No,” he replies, firm and unblinking. “Nor entitled.”

The space between us shrinks until there’s barely any left. His towering frame casts a shadow over me, and his breath, laced with peppermint and arrogance, mingles with mine.

“And I’m definitely not little,” he adds, his voice dropping to a gravelly whisper. “In any way.”

Oh, goodness!

We’re standing so close now, it feels like the floor could disappear, and we’d still be stuck here, locked in this ridiculous, magnetic pull. What makes the situation worse is that I accidentally look down to confirm that little part.

“Everything about you screams inappropriate, you know that?” I whisper, my voice a traitorous breath, shaky and thin.

He chuckles, soft and infuriatingly sexy. “Says the beautiful sharp-tongued sweetheart looking for her next come up.”

What the hell?! This man is driving me crazy in every tantalizing, blood-boiling way. Am I just attracted to evil men? As I force myself to break away from his spellbinding gaze, I realize that it’s not just us wrapped up in this moment. The entire room seems to be watching us, including the figure from the corner of my eye.

“Holy shit,” I whisper, panic coiling tight in my chest.

He immediately senses my distress, his playful demeanor shifting to genuine concern. “Ms. Kind, what’s wrong?” He inquires, his voice laced with worry.

I barely manage to breathe out, “It’s my ex-husband. He’s here.”

His brows knit together, “Ex-husband?”

And before he can fully process my answer, I clutch his strong, hard chest. Yes, his actual chest. Then, I force a laugh so fake it could win an Oscar.

“What the hell are you doing?” He mutters, his confusion clear as day.

“Just play along,” I hiss, my smile stretching painfully wide as Cory approaches.

He shakes his head with amusement and exasperation in his eyes, slightly muttering, “And you say I’m the sufferable one?”

Then, that all-too-familiar authoritative voice cuts through the tension. “Hi, Kerry. You look…stunning,” Cory says, his tone dripping with a possessiveness that makes my skin crawl.

It’s thrilling when the stranger speaks to me like that, but Cory’s gaze feels disgusting. “Stop looking at me like I’m your property, Cory,” I snap, my voice sharp, refusing to let him rattle me.

Cory’s expression shifts from smug to something sinister, a look I know all too well. “You’ll always be mine.” He says with certainty.

There’s a chilling pause between his possessive glare and his declaration over me. I want to respond, but I find myself frozen until the stranger beside me wraps a protective arm around my waist.

His eyes lock with Cory’s, unflinching. “You sure about that?” His tone is loaded with a confidence that I’ve never heard directed at my ex before.