It began with a kiss (Completed)

Chapter - 31 The Devil

"Do you know who the culprit is? The one who has pushed me in all this mess?"

"I- I am not sure."

"Really?" he raised a mocking brow.
"And here I thought you knew the culprit really well."

'It isn't me!' she had wanted to scream.
'It's this stupid damn mouth of mine!' But how was she supposed to say it? She lowered her head because she couldn't bear to look into his intense blue green gaze.

He pulled up her chin and made her look into his eyes. Those beautiful blue green eyes which always made her forget what she was going to say or do next...hell they even made her forget how to breathe!

"Your stupid mouth is the culprit, Miss Rose." he said holding her chin,"And so it should be punished. Right?"

She gulped. All the colour from her body rushed to her face.
'What is he going to do?' she wondered. She had no idea when and how he moved so close to her that his body was now almost touching hers. With one hand he was holding her chin while he placed the other hand on the table top beside her. His body was towering upon hers. It was becoming hard to breathe with all the anxiety, fear and a strange excitement.

He lowered his head bringing his face closer to hers.
"So Eva,"  his voice was husky and Eva could feel her body trembling.
"How are you going to make up for the trouble you have caused me? Hmm?" He asked.
Even she had no idea about that!

He brought his face closer to hers and his lips were just a mere centimetre away from hers. She just had to move a little towards him and they would kiss. How kissing on those sexily sculpted lips would feel like, Eva wondered.

His gaze was fixed on her lips. His breath fanning her cheeks. Eva closed her eyes... expecting something.

Seconds passed... even minutes passed but nothing happened.

She finally opened her eyes and saw him standing in front of her. His hands into the pockets of his trousers and he was looking down at her from the arrogant length of his nose.

She blushed but this time because of embarrassment and shame. What was she expecting, she chided herself. The distance between their body now increased from centimetres to inches.

A slow devilish smile appeared on his lips as if he got what he had wanted. Eva kept looking at him, dumbstruck  as to what had happened just now. He looked at her with his calculating blue green gaze before finally speaking.

"Were you expecting a kiss, Miss Rose?" he asked in his flirtatious voice.

"No!" Eva denied even though she was sure her flushed cheeks were screaming the truth.

"You thought about it, Eva. Don't lie." he smirked.

Eva was feeling the sudden urge to scratch that smirk off his face.

"I think you need some rest, Mr Richardson. And I need some space. I am going to my cabin and if you need something then instead of bothering me I would suggest you to call for someone else." she took a step to leave but he blocked her way.

"I have an idea about how to stop my grandmother from bringing girls for my marriage."

"Really?" She asked raising a mocking brow, a new thing she had recently learned looking at her boss. "Congratulations then." she said in a sarcastic tone,"Now go ahead with your planning and plotting but I need to leave."

"Not so soon, Ms Rose." He refused to move even an inch.
She looked up at him angrily.

"The solution to my problem is you."

"Pardon?" she frowned at him, unable to understand what exactly was he trying to say.

"Yes." he once again brought his face disturbingly close to hers.
"You. Miss Rose. You will act as my girlfriend."

For a minute she stood still before finally bursting into a laughter.
"You are joking. Right? Or are you drunk?" She sniffed a little to catch the smell of alcohol about him. But soon her laughter faded into the background when the person standing in front of her didn't move even a single facial muscle.

" I don't joke, Miss Rose. And I am not drunk either." he said looking dead serious.
"You will act as my fake girlfriend."

She pushed him on his chest to create some much needed distance between them and an urge to run away from him surfaced in her.
" I am sorry, Mr Richardson but find someone else because I neither have the time nor the energy to be a part of your games."

She started moving towards the door but he held her from her wrist to stop her from leaving.

"It has to be you."
" Why?" she jerked his hand away angrily. "Why don't you take the help of that hieress who came to meet you?"

"No. She came here with her mind set on marrying me. If I made her my pretend partner she will drag me to the altar and that is the last thing that I want."

"Then find someone else! I am sure with your loads of money and good looks you will definitely find someone easily and she will act for you willingly." She remarked.
'She will be willing to follow your orders even in and out of the bed.' she had wanted to add.

"Aren't you willing to do so, Miss Rose?" He asked.

"Do I look like I want to do this?" She glared at him angrily before finally turning around to move towards the door.

She couldn't believe that she had actually started liking this man and had admitted this truth to herself just 2 minutes ago. She was feeling so mad at herself for liking such a person.

" So you fell for me."

His voice made her stop in her tracks and she turned around frowning unable to understand the meaning behind his words.
Putting his hands in the pockets of his trousers he tilted his head to one side and that smirk once again appeared on his lips.

"You have started liking me, Miss Rose." he said walking slowly towards her.
"Or maybe you have already fallen for me."

"It's all your imagination, Mr Richardson." she said raising her chin defiantly looking straight into his eyes and trying her best to sound honest.

"Don't lie. Just a minute ago you had wanted me to kiss you."

"There is nothing like!"  her voice faultered a little and his smile deepened. He walked around her like a planet revolving around the sun.

"Yes, Miss Rose. You have started to like me, you even dream of me," he came to a stop behind her. His chest close to her back but never touching her. He brought his face closer to her ear as he continued,"You imagine me kissing you and you even imagine me in your be-"

"Stop! Stop it!"  She finally found his her voice.
"You are testing my patience now." But deep in her heart she knew that she had started liking him. That he wasn't wrong about all he had said just now. She had thought him to be a saint  just a few minutes ago and now he had turned into nothing less than a devil.