Touch Me Not (Manwhore, #1)(46)

“Thank you, Nikoli,” she said softly.

He nodded and went back to the fridge to get a beer. He’d started to regret the arrangement he’d made with her. Not because he didn’t want to help her, but because he could feel himself changing, and it bothered him. He found himself doing little things for her, like making sure his fridge was stocked with her favorite drink, or walking her to every class even when it made him late for his own.

Lily appreciated the smaller gestures as opposed to the grand ones. It was something he’d figured out about her over the last two weeks. The smile she’d given him over the can of pop was enough to make his stomach do a little flip of its own. It disturbed him that she had this kind of effect on him, but at the same time, it was a new feeling, and one he liked. He snorted at his own indecision. The girl was really starting to get to him.

Adam pulled out a chair for Lily at the table, and Nikoli’s eyes narrowed. His first instinct had been to beat the shit out of Boy Wonder and send him packing, but Lily hadn’t told him to get lost, so Nikoli held his tongue. Adam had been useful at least, lugging more than his fair share up the stairs.

Janet wandered over and turned on the radio. Maroon 5’s “Sugar” blared out of the speakers. “Ohhh, I love this song!”

“Make the karaoke champ sing,” Mike said, his eyes vengeful.

“No.” Lily shook her head.

“Karaoke champ?” Nikoli asked, brow arched questioningly.

“Girl can sing,” Adam confirmed. “She sings good too.”

“This I have to hear.”

“Uh, no,” Lily refused. “Not gonna happen.”

“Aww, come on, Lils,” Adam cajoled. “Sing for us.”

“You first,” she said, a wicked smile spreading across her face. “Only fair the runner up goes first.”

Adam opened his mouth and started to sing along to the lyrics. Nikoli stared, open-mouthed. Boy Wonder had a decent voice. Lily laughed at Adam’s antics as he danced around the living room. He tossed her the remote control, and she started to sing with him, belting out the song. Their voices blended well, and it was obvious to anyone they’d sung together a lot.

His mouth went a little dry when Lily stood up and started to dance with him. The next song that came on was “Worth It” by Fifth Harmony. Her dance turned from fun and flirty to sensual and just a little dirty. Oh damn. His eyes followed her hips as they swayed and grinded.

Fuck. She said she loved to dance, but…f*ck. His mouth watered when she went down and her hips did a little circle on the way back up. He barely suppressed a groan when she did some kind of wicked shimmy. Where did the woman learn to dance? If she kept this up, he was throwing them all out, and Lily was going to get her next lesson in controlling her fear. Fuck, he was hard. Glancing up, he caught Luther staring and punched him in the arm. “Eyes up,” he growled.

Nikoli swung his own eyes back to Lily and noticed Adam had gotten closer to her, dancing, his hips insinuating, grinding against hers, and a stab of jealousy struck him. What the hell? As much as he tried to deny it, the closer Adam got to her ass, the more he wanted to beat the little shit. Lily hadn’t noticed how close Adam was to her. She was having fun, and Nikoli moved closer, ready to intervene if necessary.

Lily laughed to herself when she caught Nikoli almost drooling. He’d tortured her for two weeks, and now it was her turn for a little payback. His eyes followed her hips, watched her ass bounce to the rhythm of the song, and she smiled, turning and moving with the grace of a cat.

Someone moved against her and she stilled, the song dying. Adam. She knew it because Nikoli looked furious. Her muscles tensed and she worked to control the tremors that started in her hands. Panic started in the pit of her stomach, and when Adam shifted his body, coming fully against her, his arms encircling her waist, she couldn’t stop her reaction. She jumped away from him and backed up until she hit the kitchen island. Eyes wide, she stared at him and fought to gain control.

He looked hurt, but dammit, he knew not to touch her. Her breathing sped up and she sank down to the floor as the panic attack took hold. She tucked her head between her legs and tried to breathe, tried to remember no one could hurt her.

“What the f*ck do you think you’re doing?” Nikoli roared, and she winced. She couldn’t breathe. Oh, God, she couldn’t breathe. She felt more than saw Janet hovering. Janet saw her have one of her attacks last year when Brian tried to hug her after she’d helped him pass his English class. He’d been so sorry, when he’d done nothing wrong.

“I thought she was getting better,” Adam said quietly.

“She was.” The anger in Nikoli’s voice was deafening. “If you’ve set that back, I swear…”

“Nikoli,” she whispered and hoped he could hear her.

He was there in an instant, kneeling. “Milaya, be easy. You’re safe.”

His voice sounded calm and soothing, but when his fingers grazed over the top of her head, she couldn’t stop the whimper. “Don’t, please.” She couldn’t. His touch right now only set off panic. “Don’t touch me…I can’t…I…”

“Shh, katonyac, I’m not going to touch you.”

Lily saw him stand and stalk over to Adam. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt and hauled him close, his fist rearing back to strike.