He was certain she could feel the heavy thumping of his heart beneath her delicate hand. It was that, he told himself, that and nothing more, that made her withdraw now. In his words and actions he had not given himself away, had not betrayed the depth of emotion she had somehow stirred in him. Surely it had been those things beyond his control: his soft sigh as he'd felt her tongue beneath his own, the thoughtless clench of his hand at her back, the quickening pulse in his blood. These were minor things, acceptable things, small tells he hoped she would misread as simple arousal, the natural product of the little game they played. She could not know them for what they were, could not guess at what even he himself could not understand.
He quirked a smile - too faint. His hand slipped away from her, his fingers soft at her side, giving her a teasing pinch as he released her altogether. "Have a good night, Lia."