Continued from here @eraxfthewxrst
Naomi felt a tiny spark jump in her chest at the way he said remarkable—the kind of spark she’d never admit out loud, not when she was trying so hard to look unbothered. She wasn’t falling for him; she wasn’t stupid. But she was twenty, wired on caffeine, chaos, and the kind of thrill she’d never found in boys her own age. Of course part of her liked hearing it. Of course part of her liked him—the danger of him, the age, the confidence, the fact that he shouldn’t even be looking at her. It made her feel… powerful. Reckless. A little out of her depth in a way she secretly enjoyed. Still, she reminded herself: It was one night. A hot night. Not a love story.
If she’d known he was married, she wouldn’t have touched him. She repeated that in her mind like a rule she needed to keep repeating to believe she still had some moral ground. But God, the thrill was real. So when he leaned in like that, older and sure of himself, she felt her stomach flip—not romantically, just… excited, stupidly excited, the way only someone her age could be. She let a small, teasing smile slip onto her face, trying to hide the little rush of adrenaline under something casual. “Soft spot for adventures, huh?” she murmured, lightly mocking. “Yeah, I got that impression.”
She lifted her chin a bit, pretending at confidence even though her pulse was beating way too fast. “Don’t get too sentimental, Leon,” she added, a playful edge in her voice that tried—tried—to cover how flattered she actually was. “It was fun. Really fun. But I’m not the one having a midlife crisis.” Her eyes glinted, immaturely smug—because teasing an older man felt like another kind of thrill. “And hey,” she finished, shifting just an inch closer, “if I was that unforgettable… that’s your problem, not mine.”