Valeria felt that the ground was shaking under her feet. That soon the world would begin to turn and she would forget everything. Nick's mouth was intoxicating. His hands were strong and addictive, and she just wanted to be there, be there forever and—

Her body suddenly tensed, and Nick stopped kissing her. She breathed heavily, controlling the excitement she had, and closed her eyes for a second. Then he leaned down, picked up Valeria's blouse from the floor and put it back on.

“Nick—”

“Don't say anything,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I'm not stupid, troublemaker. You don't trust me, or rather, you trust me for other things, but not when it comes to this.”

“I'm sorry,” Valeria said, stepping down from the desk without looking at him. She wasn't ready, she couldn't forgive him yet. “You're right, I trust you for a lot of things, but... I still—I can't. I'm sorry.”

“Don't be sorry,” Nick replied, getting dressed. “That fear you have is entirely my fault. But I