Lina's breathing got heavier as her sole attention was directed at the man whose face was inching closer to her.

Reuben smirked when he saw the obvious change in her breathing intake and stopped when he was just a couple of inches away from her face.

Staring down at her, he raised his right hand which was resting on the wall and gently caressed her cheek.

Lina's eyes softened when she felt his warm touch against her skin and she leaned into his palm that was tenderly cupping her cheek.

However, the warmth she felt disappeared because Reuben did not stay there for long.

He withdrew his hand and almost chuckled when he saw the sulking face that she had displayed for just a quick second.

'Why do your actions and your words convey such different things, Kitten?' He shook his head in dismay at this confusing woman who was constantly keeping him on his toes.

After her momentary lapse of self-control, Lina quickly reverted to the glare that was on her face a few seconds ago.

'He's just playing with me now!' She groaned within as a frown appeared on her face.

Reuben stood up straight once again but did not step away which would allow her any means of escape.

Recalling her words of determination just a few minutes back, his face darkened and he gazed into her eyes with a serious and emotionless look on his face.

"So you want to 'step out of our way'?" He repeated his words once again.

Lina's cheeks reddened because he had already asked the same question before but at that time just as she was about to answer him, he had leaned so close to her that her mind had blanked out.

"Yes, I do!" She asserted with a firm voice now that she had the chance to give him a reply.

Yet, the moment those words left her mouth, when her mind processed that information there was a surge of pain and annoyance emanating from her heart.

'Stop it! He likes Wade! Not ME!' She commanded her heart to stop throbbing so painfully in her chest.

After her heart-to-heart session she had in her office, she was now aware of what her heart desired.

But within minutes she was shown the harsh reality that the one her heart desired had someone else in his heart.

Just the thought of how Reuben might like Wade more than he liked her made Lina's already wounded heart to feel as though it had been bludgeoned.

Reuben watched how the color on her face paled after she declared that she was not going to come between him and Wade.

'She looks as though she is in pain after saying those words.' He inferred and felt a certain joy in his heart.

He knew that it was mean to find happiness in someone else's pain but he couldn't stop himself because this meant that Lina was affected by this incident.

'This is a step forward! At least now I know that she likes me even if it's just a little… I'll take it! Wholeheartedly!' He celebrated when he reached this conclusion.

Nevertheless, the expressions on his face never changed.

He still had that indifferent look on his face but now his lips had formed a mocking smirk.

Lina could notice that her sight was blurring because of the tears that were welling up once again and she turned her head to the side to look away from him.

Reuben held her chin and turned her head back towards him as his smirk deepened.

"So tell me, Lina, why do you look so sad?" He questioned without a hint of remorse that he was calling her out on her actions.

Lina's cheeks reddened further when the emotions hidden in her heart were being exposed by this ruthless man.

"Why does it look like you are going to cry at any moment now?" He raised his brow and asked another embarrassing question.

Her irises shook but she refused to answer his questions because if she spoke even a single word at this moment then he would hear her choking voice which would prove that he was right.

'Still so stubborn!' Reuben rolled his eyes when he saw how determined she was about not answering him.

Lina gritted her teeth and pursed her lips to keep her mouth shut.

"What was it that you said earlier?" He rubbed his chin and acted as though he was trying to recall what she had said.

"That's right! You want me to be happy with Wade, wasn't it?" He chuckled tauntingly.

Then he took a step closer and shortened the distance between them.

Looking down at her, he raised her chin and his dark eyes gazed into hers.

"Tell me why do you want that? Why do you want me to be with someone else? Why do you want to step away?" He narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw after he was done with what he had to say.

Those words egged Lina on and she could no longer stay silent.

The dam of emotions and feelings in her heart was ready to burst open any second now.

"Answer me, Lina!" He raised his voice by just a few decibels and that was enough for Lina's dam to shatter.

"Because that's what you do when you like someone! You want them to be happy even if it means that you have to watch them being happy with someone else!" She yelled out in her frustration.

The tears that she had been holding in finally flowed as the dam over her heart had now opened.

Reuben froze when he heard her outburst and blankly stared at her glistening eyes which were causing the golden flecks in them to shine brighter.

Noticing his silence, Lina placed her hands on his chest and pushed him away from her.

Finally, releasing herself from the Kabedon that she had been stuck in from the moment that Wade had left the room.

Reuben staggered a few steps backward since he was still stunned at what she had said.

"I want you to be happy, dammit! Even if it means that you are happy with Wade..." She whispered once again as she wiped the tears away from her cheeks.

'When you like someone….'

'Want you to be happy….'

Those words echoed in Reuben's mind repeatedly making his heart pound harder and faster than ever before.

'Even high-intensity cardio never made my heart pound this hard!' He exclaimed with overflowing joy in his heart.

Breaking free from his trance, his eyes focused on the woman whose shoulders trembled as she stood with her head lowered.

Reuben frowned when he saw the distance between them and decided to do something about it.

Noticing movement from his side, Lina raised her head only to find that the man had already gotten too close to her.

Her cheeks were once again held by those big warm hands and before she knew it, their lips were already in contact with each other.

Lina's eyes widened in surprise due to his sudden and completely unexpected move.

Reuben pressed their lips together a couple of times and then withdrew.

He rested his forehead on hers and then looked into those beautiful eyes that had demanded his attention whenever he gazed into them.

"Silly, Kitten~" He softly chuckled, fanning his breath over her lips making her shudder ever so slightly.

"You want me to be happy, right?" He polled and snickered when she nodded her head which was pressed against his.

"But did you know when I was the happiest today?" He questioned as he separated from her to get a better look at her face.

Lina timidly shook her head, still shy at the bold move that he had just made on her.

"When I saw you entering the room." He whispered, his low and slightly gravelly voice sending shivers down Lina's spine.

"When I heard you saying that you like me." He continued as he gradually moved closer to her body.

"When I kissed you…" He finished his sentence by pecking her lips to show what he had mentioned.

Lina's mind was overheating after she heard his 'confession' all over again.

Taking advantage of her daze, Reuben pressed their lips together and started sucking on her lower lip.

'So he likes me and not Wade?' She reversed her earlier conclusion.

She wondered after listening to his statements in confusion which soon turned to delight after feeling his hot breath on her face.

Her body moved on its own and she began to kiss him back with renewed vigor.

They had both forgotten about their condition to not kiss each other until they officially began dating.

Sipping and sucking on each other's lips, Reuben felt that there was something missing in their kiss.

He felt the need to do something... more, something bold, something dangerous.

His mind then conjured an evil plan following which he began sucking Lina's lower lip, grazing his teeth over it and then finally he chomped down on it.

He made sure that she would feel the pressure of his teeth without it being too painful for her.

The slight pain made Lina gasp in surprise, giving Reuben the perfect opportunity to slide his tongue into her mouth.

'A french!' Lina's eyes widened in shock when she felt his warm tongue gliding over her tongue.

Reuben was fretting what her reaction would be because he feared that she might be against his decision to take their kiss to the next level.

However, his worries were for naught and soon vanished into thin air when he felt Lina responding to his kiss.

Although she was blushing immensely, Lina knew exactly what to do thanks to the in-detail descriptions she had read in various novels.

'I'm sure that with the knowledge I have, I can do more ecchi stuff than Wayne - the player!' She proudly hyped herself up.

Then swiftly kicking her brother out of her thoughts she began focusing her attention on the man sticking his tongue down her throat.

Reuben gently pushed her towards the wall and continued kissing her in this Kabedon position that he had read in that novel.

Lina could feel her heart rate skyrocketing with every second that Reuben continued coiling his tongue around hers.

As though he was moving on instinct he expertly alternated between pecking, smooching her lips and not to forget the most important step, sucking on her tongue.

Thus, two people with their tongues intertwined, using their knowledge gained by reading romance novels made wet sloppy noises in the otherwise serene office.