The lights of the evening spilled into the penthouse apartment from the floor-to-ceiling windows, and the gentle illumination cast on Lia's face made her tension and hope evident. She had hardly expected Leo to contact her after the events at the office, and yet each move she made towards him was like stepping into the eye of the storm that threatened her, and still, she did not want to turn back.
Leo was leaning against the window, his hand in his pocket and the other wandering idly along the edge of the marble counter. His sharp suit was stretched to fit his large physique, and he looked at her the moment she appeared in the room. The cold, authoritative presence that was so familiar around him was overlaid with something else tonight that Lia had not seen before.
"Sit," he said, his voice steady but low, almost personal. Lia complied, her heart pounding in her chest as she sat on the edge of the leather couch.
He leaned against the window, his hands clasped behind his back, and for a moment, neither one of them said a word. There was no awkwardness in the silence—just a buzz of electricity.
"I didn't invite you here for work," Leo said finally, moving closer. Lia's breathing hitched. She could feel her heart pounding in rhythm. "I wanted to see you because I have to ask you something."
Her mind scrambled with scenarios: a promotion at work? A business partnership venture? The butterflies in her stomach had nothing on what was to come next.
"I want you to be more than just my assistant," he said, his tone low and deliberate. "I want you. Lia, I want you to be my partner—not just professionally, but personally too."
"And I was expecting to see you here because." I trailed off as Lia's eyes went wide and her cheeks flashed pink. "I. I don't know what to
Leo drew closer, touching his hand to push away some of her hair from her face. "You don't have to say anything right now," he whispered, his thumb leaving a gentle path against the side of her face. "Just. Think about it, okay?"
The room seemed to close in around them. Her heart was racing, her body pulsing toward him even as a maelstrom of fear and exhilaration whirled through her. Every shred of instinct told her to submit, to give in, yet she forced herself to pull away, to grasp just what he was saying. Leo's eyes warmed, his cold glint replaced by something almost painfully genuine. "I know this is sudden," he said, his voice barely a whisper. "But some feelings, you can't wait on."