Dangerously Yours

Kelvin

She caught my attention the moment she barged into the bank like something was chasing her.

She grabbed a form, filled it out in a rush, then headed straight for customer care. The attendant had barely finished with one customer when Little Miss Beautiful tried to slide into the next spot.

Oh, no. Someone had to teach her manners.

I stood, caught her lightly by the arm, and moved her aside.

She jerked back, shock flashing across her face.

“Excuse me?”

I turned fully toward her—and damn.

Rude and ridiculously beautiful.

Full lips. Sharp nose. Smooth brown skin. The kind of woman who’d make any man look twice. Maybe three times.

I pointed toward the row of waiting customers.

“We’ve been sitting here long before you walked in,” I said. “You really thought you could skip the queue and get attended to because you’re the Queen of England?”

She rubbed the spot where I’d touched her, annoyance flickering in her eyes.

“You didn’t have to be rude about it.”

I leaned closer, lowering my voice so only she could hear.

“With a mouth that pretty, trust me, a man can think of better uses for it.”

Her breath caught.

Satisfied, I straightened. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe it’s my turn. You’ll have to sit down and wait like every other good Nigerian citizen.”

I walked away before she could respond, but throughout the entire time I was in the bank, I kept catching myself looking at her.

Especially when she crossed and uncrossed her legs.

Christ.

That woman was distracting.

Nonye

Owerri had always been known for its nightlife.

People traveled from different parts of the country just to experience it—to drink, dance, flirt, and lose themselves until morning. And tonight, for the first time in my life, I was part of it.

It was Ify’s birthday.

We had been best friends since secondary school, the kind people automatically expected to see together. But after graduation, life had pulled us onto different paths. She got admitted into Imo State University while I enrolled in a weekend program at Nekede Polytechnic so I could work and support myself through school.

Unlike Ify, I didn’t come from money.

The moment I stepped into the club, music slammed into me from every direction. Colored lights swept across bodies packed tightly on the dance floor while smoke curled lazily through the air. The VIP section glittered with expensive bottles and men throwing cash around like it meant nothing.

And then there were the women.

Beautiful girls in tiny dresses and flawless makeup, laughing too loudly at jokes that probably weren’t funny, waiting for wealthy men to notice them.

I slipped onto a bar stool, suddenly feeling painfully out of place, and ordered a cocktail from the bartender before texting Ify.

Come and rescue me.

A few minutes later, she appeared through the crowd, hips swaying effortlessly to the music.

“So you can’t come and find me yourself?” she asked dramatically.

I rolled my eyes. “You know I’m not used to this kind of environment.”

“Well, you better start getting used to it, madam.”

I glanced around again. “Seriously though… did all these people actually come because of you?”

She laughed proudly. “Of course they did. Most of them are from my faculty.” She waved a dismissive hand in my face. “Hello? I’m popular, remember? Not everyone likes hiding inside their shell like a tortoise.”

“Your insults stopped affecting me years ago.”

She grinned and pointed toward the VIP section. “Most of the guys over there are my brother’s friends. Speaking of my brother…” She checked the time on her phone. “He’s supposed to be here already.”

“He came back from Dubai?”

“Yes. Earlier this week.”

Then suddenly her face brightened.

“Ah, there he is.”

I followed the direction of her finger—and nearly stopped breathing.

Oh God.

It was him.

The man from the bank.

The arrogant asshole who had grabbed my arm and shoved me aside like I was a child.

Except now, beneath the dim club lights, he looked even more dangerous.

He wore fitted jeans and a black T-shirt that stretched across broad shoulders and a chest carved so perfectly it looked sculpted. Confidence radiated from him as he walked toward us, calm and unhurried, like the entire room belonged to him.

Then his eyes met mine.

And that small smile appeared again.

The same one from the bank.

Three days earlier, I had rushed into the bank hoping to apply for an ATM card before my morning shift at work. I’d assumed the people seated around customer care were simply waiting.

I didn’t realize there was a queue until a strong hand closed around my arm and pulled me aside.

I should have been angry.

Any normal person would have been angry.

But the moment I looked up into his face, something inside me had shifted. Heat had rushed through my body so suddenly it embarrassed me. And when he leaned close enough for his breath to brush my ear—

God.

I felt it everywhere.

That terrified me more than anything.

Men had never made me feel that way before. Men reminded me too much of memories I spent years trying to bury.

“You’re late,” Ify complained as soon as he reached us.

He kissed her cheek lightly. “Sorry, baby sis. Something came up.”

Then his gaze slid to me.

Slowly.

Intentionally.

“Have you met my friend, Nonye?” Ify asked.

His smile widened with unmistakable amusement.

“I don’t think we’ve officially met,” he said smoothly. “I’m Kelvin.”

Like hell we hadn’t met.

“I’m Nonye.”

I extended my hand politely, but instead of shaking it, he slid an arm around my waist and pulled me gently toward him.

My breath caught as my body brushed against the hard plane of his chest.

“You smell good,” he murmured near my ear.

Heat exploded beneath my skin.

He lingered for a second too long, fingers resting against the curve of my lower back before finally pulling away.

When I forced myself to look at him, his eyes were already on me—dark, intense, knowing.

My stomach flipped helplessly.

Ify narrowed her eyes suspiciously between us.

“There’s definitely something weird about this greeting.”

“There isn’t,” I snapped too quickly.

“Mhm.” She looked unconvinced. “Anyways, I’m going back to the girls, and since my brother is here, he can keep you company and buy you drinks like the perfect gentleman he pretends to be.”

“With pleasure,” Kelvin said lazily.

“What? I thought you were staying with me.”

“It’s my birthday, Nonye.” She laughed. “I love you, but I’m not sitting at the bar all night while the real fun is happening over there.”

Then she pointed a warning finger at Kelvin.

“Behave yourself. If you stress my friend, I’ll kill you.”

He placed a hand dramatically over his chest. “I’m deeply offended you think so little of me.”

Ify winked at me before disappearing into the crowd, leaving me alone with him.

Very typical of her.

Kelvin slid onto the stool beside mine and studied me with open amusement.

“So,” he drawled, “the queue jumper.”

I groaned softly. “I did not intentionally jump the queue. I genuinely thought people were just sitting around.”

He considered me for a moment before nodding once.

“Fair enough.”

I picked up my drink and emptied the rest in one swallow.

Being around him made me nervous in a way I didn’t understand. Every glance felt deliberate. Every touch lingered too long in my head afterward.

And the worst part?

I liked it.

I hated that I liked it.

“Another round for her, one for me,” Kelvin told the bartender. “Same thing she’s having.”

“No.” I turned quickly. “I don’t want another one.”

One drink already had my thoughts scattered enough. I couldn’t imagine adding alcohol to whatever this feeling was.

He lifted a brow. “Why not?”

“I just don’t.”

A slow smile curved his lips.

“Or maybe you’re scared of losing control around me, sweetheart.”

My pulse stumbled.

“What?”

The bartender placed his drink in front of him. Kelvin took a slow sip without answering immediately, completely unbothered by the effect he was having on me.

I hated that calm confidence.

“What do you mean by that?” I pressed.

He turned slightly toward me, one arm resting against the counter.

“I see the way you react whenever I touch you,” he said quietly. “Like your body doesn’t know whether to run from me or move closer.”

My throat tightened.

“At the bank, I thought you were just proud.” His eyes dragged slowly over my face. “But no. You feel this too.”

I couldn’t breathe properly anymore.

“When I hugged you earlier,” he continued, voice low enough that only I could hear, “your entire body responded to me.”

Heat crawled up my neck.

“And right now?” His gaze dipped briefly to my lips before returning to my eyes. “You’re flushed, Nonye.”

The way he said my name nearly undid me.

“If I touched you again,” he murmured, “I don’t think you’d stop me.”

Asshole.

I held his gaze, but my body betrayed me completely. My skin burned. My heartbeat stumbled wildly against my ribs. The intensity in his eyes made me feel exposed, like he could see every dangerous thought forming in my head.

Suddenly, I needed air.

Space.

Distance.

I grabbed my purse and slid off the stool too quickly.

“I need to use the restroom.”

I should have said something sharper. Something clever. Something capable of wiping that smug look off his face.

Instead, I ran.

I could feel his eyes following me through the crowd the entire way.

And the farther I walked from him, the stronger the strange pull became.

That terrified me most of all.

Was this how it started?

Was this how my mother got trapped for years—hoping the man hurting her would eventually become the man who saved her?

By the time I entered the restroom, my chest hurt.

I shut the door behind me and leaned against it, blinking rapidly as tears burned my eyes.

How could one person affect me this quickly?

Why did he feel dangerous and comforting at the same time?

I pressed trembling fingers against my forehead as memories surfaced before I could stop them.

“You and your mother are worthless.”

My father’s voice.

Cold. Cruel. Unforgettable.

“There will never be a better man than me.”

I could still remember the way he looked at us sometimes—as though we were poison in his bloodstream instead of his family.

And still, my mother had stayed.

Even when I begged her not to.

A tear slipped down my cheek.

I quickly wiped it away before reaching into my purse for my makeup wipes. A few minutes later, I managed to fix the mascara smudged beneath my eyes and force myself together again.

But the moment I stepped out of the restroom—

My breath caught.

Kelvin was leaning against the wall outside, waiting.

Watching me like a patient predator.

Oh God.

How was I supposed to escape this man?