She had always prided herself on her composure, on the way her voice never wavered, never gave away the emotions swirling just beneath the surface. It was a skill she had honed over the years, learning how to mask her feelings, how to keep her thoughts guarded behind a calm exterior. But tonight, there was something different—something that made it harder to control.
Her words came out steady, measured, as she spoke to him, but beneath the surface, her body was speaking a different language. She could feel the nervous tension in her hands, the way they fidgeted ever so slightly with the hem of her sleeve, the way her fingers traced the edge of the table when she thought no one was looking. She tried to ignore it, tried to focus on the conversation, but every time their gazes met, something inside her twisted.
He hadn’t said anything, but he didn’t need to. The way he looked at her, the way his eyes lingered just a moment longer than necessary, told her everything. She had known this moment would come, had known that there was only so long she could hold herself together. But no matter how hard she tried to keep the cracks hidden, her body betrayed her.
As she shifted slightly in her chair, she could feel the heat rising in her chest, the fluttering of her heart against her ribcage. She told herself she shouldn’t feel this way, that it was foolish to allow the soft, silent pull between them to grow stronger. But her body didn’t listen. Her back straightened just a little, and her posture, once so relaxed, became rigid as if to prevent herself from leaning closer.
She knew she was playing with fire—knew that every small movement, every subtle shift in her body was a risk. But she couldn’t stop it. His presence had a power over her, and as much as she tried to keep her emotions in check, she felt herself drawn toward him like a moth to a flame. Her breath quickened as she spoke, her words now carrying an underlying tension that she hadn’t intended to convey.
She could see the way his gaze softened, the way his lips parted slightly as if he were trying to process everything she wasn’t saying. And as he leaned in just a little, she knew that it was too late to turn back. Her body had already told him everything she had been too afraid to admit out loud.
Her voice was steady, but her body had already given her away.