"Stop crossing the line, you little brat," he growled, his voice low and rough, as his other arm slammed beside me, caging me in.

"I'm not crossing the line!" I fought back, chin tilted up in defiance even though my heart was thundering against my ribs.

He leaned closer, the faint smell of his cologne wrapping around me dark, expensive, addictive. "Then why," he murmured, his lips almost brushing my ear, "do you keep testing my patience, Sanvi?"

I swallowed hard, refusing to show how his proximity made my thoughts scatter like sparks. "Maybe because you make it too easy to mess with you," I said, a smirk tugging at my lips.

His eyes darkened, a dangerous glint flickering in them. "Careful," he warned, his voice dropping to a husky whisper. "You won’t like what happens when I lose control."

"Maybe I will," I whispered back before I could stop myself.

His jaw flexed. The air between us turned heavy, thick with unspoken tension. For a moment, neither of us moved his breath brushing against my cheek, his gaze burning into mine.

Then, with a sharp exhale, he stepped back, running a hand through his hair as if forcing himself to regain composure.

"You're impossible," he muttered.

"And you’re bossy," I shot back, folding my arms.

His lips curved, not quite a smile more like a warning wrapped in temptation. "Remember, princess," he said quietly, "I’m not just your bodyguard. I’m the one who decides how close danger gets to you… and how close I do."

For a second, I forgot how to breathe. His words lingered in the air, thick and heavy like the promise of something I wasn’t supposed to want.

I forced myself to scoff, crossing my arms tighter. “You take your job way too seriously.”

His gaze flicked down to my lips before meeting my eyes again. “And you take danger way too lightly.”

I rolled my eyes, pretending I didn’t notice how his stare made my stomach twist. “Maybe because I’ve never actually seen any danger,” I taunted. “Unless you count you hovering around me twenty-four-seven.”

He moved again, so fast I barely caught it one step and I was pinned between him and the wall, his body a wall of heat, his breath ghosting over my face.

“Don’t test me, Sanvi,” he said, voice low, lethal, but there was something else beneath it. Something that made my pulse race. “If you were anyone else, I’d have walked away long ago.”

“But I’m not anyone else,” I whispered, unable to stop the words.

His eyes softened for a fraction of a second then hardened again, like steel snapping shut. “That’s the problem.”

The silence between us was deafening. Every inch of space, every breath, every heartbeat felt too loud.

I looked up at him, trying to read what hid behind that stoic mask. “You think you scare me, Shivansh?” I asked softly.

He leaned closer until his lips brushed the edge of my jaw, not quite touching. “I don’t want to scare you, little brat,” he murmured. “But I will, if that’s the only way to make you listen.”

My throat went dry. “You can’t control me.”

“Try me"

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