Chapter 4 I DON'T PLAY WITH SMALL RISKS

The flames in my chest twisted into something darker, and I didn't think; I moved.

Sliding onto the stool beside him, I leaned in just close enough for my knee to brush against his. "Well, well," I murmured, my voice smooth, almost playful, almost purring. "Didn't think I'd run into family tonight."

His head turned slowly, eyes a hypnotic shade of blue locking onto mine. There was a flicker of recognition, but no surprise. "Family," he echoed, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "That's... one way to put it."

I tilted my head, my lips curving in a smile that wasn't entirely innocent. "Neven's uncle, right? Caesar Dominic."

His gaze swept over me in a slow, deliberate pass that made my pulse stumble. "And you must be the one making my nephew act like he's lost his mind lately."

His words were low, laced with something between curiosity and warning.

I leaned in, letting my perfume curl into the space between us. "Depends on who you ask. Some might call it... influence."

Caesar's smirk deepened. "Dangerous influence, maybe."

"Dangerous," I echoed softly, pressing my knee more firmly against his. "It can be fun."

"Rough night, Mrs...?" He drew the last word, smoothly as if expecting me to remind him of my name.

I smirked, letting the pause hang before I spoke. "JaneVera."

A quiet chuckle slipped from me, but he only let the silence stretch, his eyes never leaving mine. And since he saw me as his nephew's girlfriend, his gaze weighed me, deciding if I was worth the trouble... or trouble worth taking.

"You always drink alone, Caesar?" I asked, my voice low, threading through the hum of conversation and the clink of glasses.

He swirled the amber liquid in his glass before taking a slow sip. "Only when I want to be left alone."

"And yet..." I leaned in, letting the edge of a smile play on my lips. "You haven't told me to leave."

His chuckle was low, almost a growl. "Maybe I'm curious. Maybe I want to see what game my nephew's girl is playing."

I tilted my head, feigning innocence. "Game? I'm just having a drink and you happened to sit next to me."

"Mm." His gaze dipped briefly, unapologetically, before locking onto mine again. "And your knee happened to brush mine... twice."

My lips parted in a small, knowing smile. "Maybe that wasn't an accident." I said as I let my fingertips trail along the rim of my glass, my eyes fixed on him with no intention of looking away.

For a moment, neither of us spoke, just the quiet hum of tension coiling between us, winding tighter, thicker. He didn't look away. Neither did I and in that silence, I knew exactly how to make him take the first step... and how to make Neven pay without even being in the room.

"Here is your drink, sir," the bartender said, disrupting the tension between us as he slid a fresh glass of drink across the counter.

Caesar reached for it, then lifted it toward me in an unspoken toast. I raised mine to meet him, the sharp click of glass against glass hanging between us.

"Cheers?" I murmured, lifting it to my lips.

He drank, eyes still locked on mine, then set his glass down deliberately in front of me. I leaned back and took a slow sip of my own, never breaking eye contact too. The whiskey burned down my throat, loosening the last threads of restraint inside me.

Caesar's gaze dipped to my legs before returning to my face, a shadow of a smirk ghosting over his lips. "You know," he said, his voice low and deliberate, "You shouldn't be drinking with a man like me."

"Mm-hm." I set my glass down, letting my eyes flicker to his pinkish kissable lips before meeting his stare again. "And why's that?"

"Because a man like me doesn't stop at drinks. And you should know,"His reply was smooth, a warning dressed as an invitation and leaning close enough for his words to curl into my ear like heat, he added, "You shouldn't be here alone, drinking with a man like me. It's dangerous." His voice was low and velvety, the kind of sound that slipped beneath the skin and lingered, dark and undeniably seductive.

And as if to prove his point, his hand slid onto my leg, fingers slipping beneath the hem of my dress until they found the bare skin of my thigh. I inhaled feverishly. His touch wasn't rushed, it was deliberate, claiming, each slow inch of contact sending a coil of heat through me, tightening low in my stomach. The bar, the voices, the clink of glasses blurred, leaving only the press of his hand and the weight of his gaze on me.

My lips curved into something between a smirk and a challenge. "Neven said you were dangerous." I traced the rim of my glass with one finger, letting the silence sharpen before adding, "Now, I'm starting to see why."

His eyes darkened at my words, the faintest twitch of a smile tugging at his mouth. "Neven never knew how to define me." His thumb pressed firmer against my thigh, the pressure toeing the line between a tease and a claim. "Danger isn't something you hear about, sweetheart. It's something you feel."

He arched a brow, leaning in close, his cologne, dark and expensive, unapologetic sliding into my senses, "And yet... here you are, still here, leaning closer."

I tilted my head, letting my eyes catch the low light as I leaned closer to him. "Maybe I like being too close to danger," I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Then tell me...", His lips curved, voice dropping lower, threading heat through every word. "Are you bold enough to feel mine?" He asked as his smile sharpened, predatory. "Be careful with your answer, sweetheart...because danger cuts too deep, and it doesn't play fair." His thumb pressed harder against my thigh, dragging upward just enough to make my breath hitch.

The smile on his lips thinned into something darker, sharper, as his hand slid higher with deliberate slowness until his fingers pressed between my inner-thighs, making me gasp the instant they brushed my cunt through the thin fabric of my panties.

"Hahhh...",My gasp broke into a heavy silence, and his voice followed, a whisper edged with restrained hunger. "And I don't play with small risks." Caesar concluded.