I cautiously pulled the bag toward me. The sleek black packaging felt lighter than it looked. Taking a deep breath, I slipped my fingers into the opening and began to pull out the contents.
My breath hitched.
The first thing I saw was the soft, crimson lace of a lingerie set, the kind you'd see on the cover of an intimate apparel catalog.
My fingers trembled as I unfolded it, revealing intricate floral embroidery that looked scandalously suggestive. I quickly stuffed it back into the bag, my heart pounding.
But my curiosity won out. Against my better judgment, I reached in again and pulled out two more sets—one was a daring black, while the other was an innocent-looking white with satin ribbons.
They were undeniably beautiful. And sexy. Far too sexy to come from my brother.
A thousand questions flooded my mind. Was this some sort of peace offering for being an ass to me for some days now? Or was it an inside joke gone terribly wrong?
Wait... Did he have someone else in mind when he bought these? Perhaps he bought them for June and decided to tease me with them?
What a terrible sense of humor!
The idea of Alaric browsing through a lingerie store seemed laughable as I imagined it, yet here was the evidence in my hands.
My gaze darted to the glass wall separating my office from his. To my shock, he was sitting at his desk, reclined in his chair, watching me intently. His eyes didn't even waver when I caught him.
My stomach dropped.
I flinched, shoving the lingerie back into the bag as the heat burned its way up my neck and into my cheeks. His expression was unreadable, but the intensity of his gaze... I couldn't tell if he was amused or… something else entirely.
Oh, Selene! What have I gotten myself into? My brother was beginning to act in a way that disturbed me.
I stood up abruptly, clutched the bag in one hand, and went to his office.
"Okay, Alaric, the joke's up," I dropped the bag on his desk with an eye roll, "They are for June, aren't they?" I sighed, placing both hands on my waist.
He didn't reply immediately. Instead, a flicker of something similar to irritation crossed his sharp features. Then, he masked it with a calmness that only fueled my frustration. "Who says they are for her?" He asked, his gaze never leaving mine.
"You didn't possibly get these for me," I said, laughing incredulously, though the laugh came out more like a nervous breath. "Sexy lingerie, Alaric? Really?"
He leaned back in his chair, the faintest smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. "And why can't I? Is it such a crime for a brother to buy his sister lingerie?"
"Lingerie, Alaric? Do you hear how insane that sounds?" I asked incredulously, pulling the red one out of the bag and pointing it at him.
He shrugged, unbothered by my rising irritation. "It's just clothing."
"No, it's not just clothing," I countered, my voice lowering as I stepped closer to his desk. "Why would you buy these for me? You're not my boyfriend. What's the point of this?"
His eyes flicked to the bag, then back to mine, his expression darkening slightly as his jaw clenched. "Does everything need a point with you, Jasmine?" He stood up, adjusting his navy blue suit.
"Alaric..." I was saying, but the words stuck in my throat when he took long strides until he stood close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him. The scent of his cologne—spiced cedar and something darker—filled my senses.
The office suddenly felt so small as his huge frame swallowed my small one. My pulse quickened, and I couldn't stop the bead of sweat sliding down my temple.
I clutched the bag tighter, suddenly feeling like I was holding a live grenade.
"Stop overthinking things, Mine," he murmured, the word dripping with an intimacy that sent a shiver racing down my spine.
That single word—Mine—knocked the air from my lungs. I didn't like the way it sounded.
"You are my kid sister. And I can buy you anything I deem fit. These are just lingerie. Not sex toys." The tone of his voice didn't match the intensity of his gaze. His tone was softer.
The casual, deliberate way he said those two forbidden words, 'sex toys,' made my heart slam against my ribs. I knew he could hear it, feel it, the tension between us.
I swallowed hard, nodding slowly, my voice coming out small and strained. "Okay. Thank you," I said, desperate to create distance between us and to diffuse whatever this was.
But his eyes stayed on me, dark and intense, like a predator watching its prey. I could feel my skin burning under his gaze, my legs threatening to buckle beneath me.
I cleared my throat, "I should…" Just as I was about to say more, thankfully, the door swung open, breaking the tension between us. I jumped, stepping back as if caught doing something I shouldn't have.