My Dad's Bestfriend

Sienna

I couldn't tell if it was the alcohol coursing through my veins or Alexander Grayson

himself that sent a shiver tearing through my body.

Devil's Den.

And what was I now? The prey?

"What... what do you want?" I stammered, his body heat so close to mine that it was nearly suffocating. The pain in my chest throbbed, sharp and relentless, clouding my thoughts. I wasn't supposed to find comfort in Alex's presence, yet my traitorous body leaned into the warmth he radiated.

I could feel the tension in his muscles through his shirt, the heat of him pressed against my back. With every steady breath he took, his body stiffened further, his desire becoming palpable.

"I should be the one asking you that question," he murmured, his voice a low, gravelly rumble that sent goosebumps cascading over my skin. His breath teased the sensitive curve of my neck, and I clenched my fists to keep steady. "What do you want, Sienna?"

The question left me speechless. What did I want? At that moment, I wanted anything—anything to distract me from the pain clawing at my chest like a thousand tiny vipers. I wanted to feel numb. I wanted to forget I was broken.

"Do you think you can help?" The words escaped me before I could stop them, trembling in the air between us.

I felt his smirk against my skin before I saw it, his lips curving in amusement as he brushed my hair aside. The tip of his nose trailed down the back of my neck, slow and deliberate, drawing an involuntary shudder from me.

"If you allow me to," he whispered, his grip tightening as he pulled me even closer. My body betrayed me entirely, pressed against his, my heavy breathing giving away the storm inside me.

"It didn't take my permission to order your guards to throw my ex out," I bit out, anger lacing my words despite the tremor in my voice. "So why the hesitation now?"

"So you figured that out," he said with a husky chuckle, his tone both amused and impressed.

It wasn't hard to connect the dots after I'd learned Alexander Grayson owned this club.

"Such a clever little thing," he mused, his fingers tracing a slow, maddening path from my hand to my arm, lingering at my exposed collarbone. I sucked in a shaky breath as heat flared across my skin. "Yet you fell for someone like Ryatt. What a shame. A woman like you deserves better than a man who uses a forgotten key as an excuse to buy his side chick-your so-called best friend Kelly-the same dress as yours."

like a slap, my breath stalling. I turned sharply to face him, my chest tightening with

hand settling firmly on my hip. The proximity was dizzying, his warm breath brushing against

his voice soft but unyielding. "The day you went shopping for your birthday, and that piece of shit you call a boyfriend claimed he forgot his keys? He used that time

and I felt a burn

That piece of shit....

proof?" The

low sound that dripped with inevitability, as though he'd been waiting for my question.

arm remained firmly wrapped around my waist as he retrieved his phone, his movements deliberate. A few swipes, and then he turned the screen toward me. My heart

the center of his universe. They browsed, laughed, and finally settled on a dress he picked with. The same

longer, my

could I have been so blind? So stupid? Every sign, every warning, I had ignored them all for the sake of

smirk faint but cutting. "So,

stretched between us, heavy and suffocating. Anger simmered beneath my skin, blending with the raw ache in

its flames, a question rose, unbidden and fierce. "How can you

within them. Slowly, he raised a hand and brushed his thumb against my trembling bottom lip. The touch sent an electric jolt

murmured, his voice low and rough. He pulled me closer, his breath fanning against my cheek. "Or should I say... what your body is asking

hitched. "Can you understand what it's asking

lips hovered dangerously close to mine, our breaths tangling in the charged space between us. "I can read you pretty damn well, Sienna Blake," he growled, his voice dripping with certainty. "Like the back of

you waiting for?" My voice dropped, deep and daring

to

am I saying

in his gaze made my pulse quicken, a shiver skittering down my spine. "But if you want this... you

pull of Alexander Grayson, or something buried deep within me that made the word slip out. "Yes," I breathed, my voice

that moment, I saw him for what he truly was-dangerously beautiful. The kind of beauty that made the world shrink and fade away. A face

many women at his feet. And now, I

hips as though it was the most natural thing in the world. He didn't spare a glance at the

he carried me out of the chaos and into a room. Probably his office. I didn't care.

into mine as he stood between my thighs. His hand came up to wrap around my throat, firm but not suffocating,

for, flower," he whispered, his voice a low growl that sent shivers down my spine. His lips trailed a deliberate