Seeing as the conversation was over, Alex turned to leave, but Julian's voice stopped her in her tracks.
"Where do you think you're going?"
She froze mid-step, glancing over her shoulders. Her brows pinched slightly as she tilted her head to the side. "To my room?"
Julian took a slow, deliberate step toward her, a teasing glint in his eyes and a half-smirk tugging at his lips.
"You think I'm just going to let you walk away after what you did?"
Alex's body stiffened, her shoulders tensing as she realized what he was getting at. She turned fully to face him, feigning nonchalance. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"You stole my first kiss without permission," He said smoothly, narrowing his eyes at her. "I need compensation."
She blinked, stunned, as a beat of silence passed. Heat rushed to her cheeks, and she quickly averted her gaze, biting the inside of her cheek. She had hoped he would let the incident go. Clearly, she was wrong.
"Yeah, right," she scoffed. "I doubt that was your first kiss." Her eyes flicked downward, pausing on the sliver of skin that peeked out of his unbuttoned shirt. With a face and body like that, he probably had kissed plenty of women already.
Julian smirked. "Since I have amnesia, it is my first kiss. And you took it so brazenly."
He leaned in, his breath ghosting over her ear as he whispered, "You have to pay for that."
Her breath hitched. She instinctively took a step back.
"W-wh-what—"
The words died on her lips as he took another slow step forward, backing her against the wall. The space between them was almost nonexistent now. She caught the faint, intoxicating scent of his cologne. It was clean, sharp, and utterly sharp.
Damn it!
Why was she suddenly concerned with his smell?
Her heart pounded against her ribs. Her hands twitched at her sides, unsure whether to push him away.
The closer he got, the more aware she became of the heat radiating from him. She felt his gaze sweep over her, leaving her feeling hot.
She swallowed hard, struggling to calm her rushing nerves. She couldn't understand why her body was reacting this way to a stranger she had barely known for three weeks.
"Y-you should step back a little," she said, finally able to form a coherent sentence, though she was a little breathless.
"Why?" Julian arched a brow, a knowing grin tugging at his lips. His voice was maddeningly casual. "I'm comfortable right where I am."
His eyes flickered with amusement as he tilted his head slightly, his gaze never leaving hers. "Am I making you nervous, Ms. Doe Eyes?"
"Of course not." She said quickly, a little too quickly.
"Then why is your face red?"
"It's just… hot in here," she muttered, avoiding his eyes as she waved a hand to fan her face to prove her point. Even though the AC was at twenty-six degrees.
Julian chuckled, clearly not buying it. But he decided to let it slide. He already got the reaction he wanted.
Something about watching her squirm under his gaze sent a rush of excitement through him. It was the same exhilaration he had felt the first time he saw her at the hospital—an electric curiosity. It thrilled him, watching her shift from fierce to flustered in mere seconds.
Alex swallowed hard, glancing up at him through her lashes, her voice cautious. "What do you want as compensation?"
Julian hummed, glancing up in mock contemplation, his eyes narrowing slightly as if weighing his options.
Then he flashed a smile that made her stomach dip. "How about a kiss?"
Alex's eyes widened, nearly bulging out of their sockets. Her breath caught, and she stared at him like he'd grown a second head.
He must be joking, she thought. She studied him carefully, searching every inch of his face for a hint that would tell her he was messing with her. But his expression was unreadable. His lips quirked, but his gaze held hers.
Then, despite her better judgement, her gaze unwillingly dropped to his lips. Plump and moist, just as they had been earlier. The memory hit her hard. The softness of his lips against hers. The way they moved. The warmth. The way it felt.
it threatened to swallow her whole.
Heat crawled up her neck.
She was in trouble.
Would it really be a bad thing to kiss him again?
No! she chided herself. What was she thinking? Why was her mind suddenly flooded with thoughts of his kiss?
Nervously curling her toes, she arched her eyebrows. Her voice was a little unsteady as she asked, "Are you serious?"
She held her breath as she waited for his answer.
Julian smiled and leaned in.
She was about to shut her eyes for the kiss when he flicked her forehead lightly and pulled away, taking a couple of steps back. "Of course not. I was just messing with you."
His tone was light, as if none of what happened carried any weight. Stretching his arms, he let out a lazy sigh. "Just take me out. I can't stand being cooped up in this apartment all day or in your office. I deserve a break."
Alex blinked, unsure whether to feel relieved... or disappointed.
She had sworn to keep her distance from anything relatively intimate after Chad and focus on her business. Yet, some part of her had maybe, just maybe, hoped he was serious.
"Oh," she said, plastering on a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I figured it was a joke. You had me for a second."
She gave a light laugh.
Without giving him a chance to reply, she turned around to hide her flushed cheeks.
"I'll take you somewhere fun tomorrow. Goodnight."
And with that, she left the living room, making sure not to walk away too fast. And shut the door to her room behind her, pretending her heart wasn't beating just a little too fast.