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“What do you think?”
His eyes followed the same path mine had, and for some reason it made heat rise beneath my skin. When he got to my face, his gaze was burning.
“I don’t know what to think, Clay. That’s the problem.”
Shit. He was going to be cryptic in the middle of a crowd of people when I couldn’t question him about it. I’d say it wasn’t fair, but I had a feeling that’s exactly why he was doing it.
He wanted to press his own advantage.
I’d find a way to turn it around.
I followed him as he walked past the stores I would have shopped at before I’d taken my job — the cheaper clothes, the things I’d sometimes stolen off the racks just to make sure I could stay warm in the winter. He led me down a strip of shops, and the further we went, the less and less people there were around us.
I knew why.
The further we went, the more expensive the products were. I knew some of these stores required a membership to even step inside, and I’d never bothered to get one. I’d never seen the need — if I ever required specific clothing for a job, it was usually supplied a few days before I was sent off, so I’d have time to tailor anything that didn’t fit right.
Jayce walked all the way to the end of the hall and fished in his wallet to pull out a black card. That’s all it was — a matte black rectangle with his name printed across the bottom in tiny golden lettering.
The man standing at the door took one glance at it and let us walk through.
I’d never been in a place so expensive. It was ridiculous. I could tell from the way the clothing hugged the mannequins that it cost more than anything I’d intentionally bought myself.
Jayce’s eyes turned back to mine — in the low lighting of the store, the blue almost burned.
“Go ahead. I only pulled out fifty, but I can pay more if you find something you like.” He said fifty like it was a casual number and not fifty thousand dollars. “We can stop at the grocery after, so you can pick out whatever food you want until we get the delivery.”
There was pleasure in his voice when he offered me the entire store on a silver platter. I could tell he liked being given the chance to do this, the chance to buy things for me. The chance to clothe me and take care of me.
No one had bothered before. Even my employers didn’t check in with me when I was injured on a job. They just gave me a set amount of time for healing based on the doctor’s report and expected me back at my best.
It was… odd.
“You really don’t have to do this. We can stop at a thrift shop and I can pick some things up. Or we can go back to my apartment if it’s that much trouble.” Even as I offered, his head shook back and forth.
“We’re already here now.” His hand came out and gently shoved me away from him, toward the walls lined with dark clothing that I had to admit looked exquisite. “Go ahead. Have fun.”
Have fun.
He crossed his arms over his chest and fixed his eyes on me — apparently, I was supposed to have fun shopping, and he was going to take his pleasure in watching me.
I didn’t think so.
“How about this?” I walked back to him and ran my hand along his arm. He tensed beneath me, but melted when I linked our fingers together. “Help me?”
I wasn’t even trying to seduce him with the words, but it made his expression go glazed for just a second. Was he really that fascinated with me that just the prospect of doing this made him happy?
“Sure.” Jayce looked between us at our linked fingers and gently squeezed. “Let’s go.”
My arms were loaded up with bags. I’d never bought so many clothes at the same time in my life, and I could see the satisfaction rolling off Jayce in near palpable waves. He really did enjoy taking care of me, and it was a weird time to realize I liked it.
I waited until we were in the dark of the parking lot to turn toward him. “Jayce, listen… I —”
There was a flash of silver, and my body stiffened. Jayce didn’t bother turning before he stepped between me and the man standing by his car.
“Park, what are you doing here?” Jayce’s voice was soft, reasonable, but his shoulders were so tense it made my body ache — I didn't miss the way he shifted subtly as he faced the man, blocking me almost completely from view with his broad frame.
“Sorry, Jayce. Orders from Marcus. You know how it is. Apparently, you’re not into sharing your toys… so he wanted me to come fetch him.” He gestured with the gun, and I realized he was trying to point it at me. “You’re allowed to come, of course. But…” The man smiled. “If you don’t cooperate, I’m allowed to shoot your new toy. So…”
