AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He frowned. “Doesn’t matter.”
“If you want me to stop fighting you, then yes…it matters.”
Sucking in a breath, he shook his head. His gaze skittered away, skimming books and literary luxury before finally settling back on mine. His voice was barely audible. “You weren’t supposed to be here. I was meant to come alone. But…circumstances meant you were noticed, so I had no choice.”
The last two sentences lodged in my mind, echoing over and over again.
Meant to come alone.
You were noticed, so I had no choice.
I went very still, trying to figure him out.
I meant to ask about his first comment, yet stupid ego blurted. “You noticed me?”
He groaned. “That’s what you’re worried about?” His hand landed on my hip, flexing like a clawed paw. “Don’t worry, I’ll pay for that little slip-up for the rest of my life.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I was told to buy you. To proposition your ex so he left you all alone and in my control. But the rest…the other offer I made? That was real.”
“You were told to get rid of Sam?”
“Yep.”
“By who?”
“Doesn’t matter now, it’s done.”
My heart kept pounding; my mind kept whirling, trying to unravel his secrets. “So…you did things you didn’t want to do, but the million euros you offered me was your choice?”
“Yes.”
“Because you want me for yourself? Because you noticed me?”
His eyebrows came down. “Can you honestly say you didn’t notice me back?”
Lies sharpened my tongue. I wanted to hurl falsehoods like daggers, but instead, I held his stare and tried to be as honest as he’d been. “I noticed you.”
God, why does that hurt to confess?
“I-I was drawn to you.”
“Putain, c’est la merde. (Shit, this is so fucked up.) None of this was supposed to happen. I wish you’d never been in that godforsaken club. I wish you’d never noticed me or I’d noticed you. You’d be safe, and I’d…”
When he didn’t continue, I shifted against him. “You’d…?”
“Be here. Where I’m supposed to be.”
I cocked my head, studying him like an inquisitor. Thanks to Krish and his nonverbal days, I’d gotten used to reading body language. I’d gotten rather good, but Henri…he was hard to read. Hard to pin down his true thoughts when they scattered in all directions.
For a man playing the part of a rapist, he seemed oddly…sad.
“You said you were meant to come here alone?”
He scowled. “Are we going to stand around whispering all day? They’re watching—”
“If you want me to stop fighting you, then answer the question. Help me understand.”
