Aria walked toward him and, without a single warning, wrapped her arms tightly around Ivan.
The sudden closeness caught him completely off guard. His body stiffened, a flash of surprise running through his chest, and for a second he just froze, unable to respond.
He wished, more than anything at that moment, that it would end soon, that the world would stop forcing him into these moments of closeness he didn't want but couldn't completely reject.
One thing Ivan despised more than anything was pretense.. pretending to like something he didn't. That kind of acting burned him from the inside out.
But Aria didn't let go.
She held on like she had been starving for this touch, like she had been craving this kind of closeness for years and finally got the chance to take it fully, without hesitation, without consequence.
Her grip tightened just slightly, and it was all Ivan could do to keep from recoiling entirely. It was overwhelming.
