*******************************
Ariana, who had not expected something like this to happen, also stepped back and looked at the muscular chest as the man turned around to face her.
He didn't have to.
Because there was no way she was going to mistake him for someone else, even if she had gone blind.
Especially when his luxurious yet damning scent of bergamot, musk, and amber filled her nostrils the second he stepped close to her.
"Morning, Pallas. I am pleased to see you at such an early hour," Nicolai said to her as if he could not see the man standing behind him.
"I can't say the same,"
'What are you doing here?'
Sensing something amiss, Ariana furrowed her brows and wanted to correct herself, but Nicolai had already cottoned on to her mistake. He laughed lightly and remarked, "Does my presence unnerve you, Pallas?"
"I made a silly mistake."
