I bit my lip.

"Is that how you came to offend me for such an old man who watched you get called a mistress?" Alex's voice was low, pressed against my earbone where only I could hear it.

I held back my tears and tilted my face up to look at him.

He laughed low, "Do you want me to help you?"

I tilted my face up and stubbornly refused to bow my head.

Alex's pupils shrank slightly, his throat slid a little, hooked my chin and leaned down for a kiss.

The man's breath came through, and the smell of tobacco instantly invaded my breath. I raised my hand...