Hesitate

When I opened the file and saw her face, I knew I was in trouble.

The first time she put her hand in mine, I should have simply taken her home and continued to keep her safe from a distance. But her pull was too strong, her beauty too irresistible, and before I knew it was happening, she'd brought me to my knees.

I wasn't the only one who was falling, though. She loved the man I pretended to be, and it killed me to know that when she found out who I really was, the hurt I caused her was something I couldn't protect her from.

A minute passes with her just staring at me, and the sweat gathering at my hairline drips down the side of my face. She watches it fall, and I jump to put my feet on the outside of the belt, then lean down so we're face to face. "You might wanna contain your drool, sweetheart. I'd hate for you to slip and hurt yourself."

Her head snaps back like I just woke her up from a dream, and my smirk transforms into a grin. "Whatever." She rolls her eyes, and when she starts to walk away, I grab her arm. "Yes?" she asks.
I'll wait until her eyes are on mine because I need to see her reaction, and her face is so expressive it gives everything away. The moment she turns her body toward me, I slide my finger down the inside of her arm over the smooth skin there and link our pinkies together. Her face softens with the light touch. "You wanna grab some coffee when you're done?"

"Yes, but I can't. I won't have time. My class is in five minutes and--"

"Skip your class."

"Q."

I press the button to shut the treadmill off and step down. "Madeline." I love that her face softens when I say her name.

"I need to go to yoga."

I step back, and my eyes make the journey from her pretty face, down her bare neck, past her full breasts that are compressed in a tight black sports bra, past her flat stomach, down her toned legs covered only by skintight yoga pants, and then back up. "You don't need to go to yoga."

She tilts her head to the side as a sexy, shy smile plays on her lips. "If I want you to keep looking at me like that, I do."