She put her hand upon his heart, rubbing small circles on his chest as he talked. “It must be very difficult. How do you choose which children to help, once you’ve entered one of those places? There must be so many. I’d imagine it would be overwhelming, but you can’t save them all. You’re only one man.”
He lowered his arm to look at her, grateful for her easy understanding. “It is. My God, you can’t imagine how much it haunts me, how the faces of those I couldn’t help fill my nightmares...” He swallowed roughly and shook his head. “But this time, I found a girl named Bridget, just twelve years old... Still, she was older than most of them. When I bought her services, I played cards with her all night. I went back a few days later, but she wasn’t in her room. Instead, three henchmen were hiding in wait for me.”
She pushed herself up on one elbow and stared down at him in alarm. “How did you get away?”
“They lunged for me too quickly. I was only halfway through the window, and I managed to escape across the rooftops. But something similar happened the night I stole Gabriel, so I think the bastard who owns those places has made the connection between who I am in real life and Prometheus. From now on, I fear that any time I visit one of these unfortunate children as myself, they’ll be waiting for me.”
She leaned down and brushed her lips softly against his. “You’ve done more than anyone could ask of you. Perhaps it’s time for you to lie low for a while.”
“You don’t understand.” He stared up into her lovely eyes, fighting his impatience, willing her to see how important this was to him. “I can’t find Bridget. I’ve gone back there every night, hiding in the shadows, peering through the windows, asking questions of everyone who will talk to me. I fear they’ve hurt her, sent her somewhere else, somewhere even worse, all because I singled her out.”
“It’s not your fault,” she insisted. “She was already lost.”
“I’ve got to find her,” he replied stubbornly.
She stared at him for a long moment and then nodded. “All right. I’ll help you. We’ll find her.”
“Vanessa,” he murmured on a choked laugh. “The last thing I want is to drag you into this. But thank you. Thank you for listening.”
He scooped her into his arms, tumbling her across him and surprising a small squeal out of her as he directed her to straddle his waist and brace her hands on his shoulders. “Kiss me,” he urged. “I don’t want to think about it anymore, and I’m dying for a taste of you.”
She smiled naughtily and leaned forward, pressing her mouth to his. Pure passion. He was starving for her, and nothing separated them but a few wisps of fabric. He could think of nothing but getting inside her, of burying himself in her sweetness.
He cupped her breasts through the sheer fabric of her nightgown, and she moaned into his mouth, shifting against him in obvious pleasure. He broke away and stared up at her, his breath hitching in his chest. “I want to make love to you, Vanessa.”
She gazed at him for an endless moment and then hesitantly moved her hand toward his face. “Yes,” she whispered. “But only if you let me take off your mask.”
Her words sent an icy rush through his body, freezing all the heat away. Numb with disappointment, he caught her hand just as she would have ripped his mask away. “No,” he growled. “No, Vanessa.”
Hurt filled her dark eyes. “You expect me to trust you, to open myself to you completely, and yet you still won’t tell me your name or let me see your face?” She shook her head sadly. “I want to know you. I want you to trust me the way I trust you.”
Sheer terror filled him at the very thought. He wasn’t ready for this. He couldn’t bear to see the admiration in her eyes turn to disgust. Perhaps it was better to keep the fantasy of the last month and never ruin it with the reality of her finding out who he was.
While his thoughts raced, she held his gaze pleadingly and reached once more for the mask.
With a growl of frustration, he tossed her back on the mattress and rolled away, standing up and putting his coat and cloak back on with angry, jerky movements. “This was a mistake,” he told her roughly, unable to look at her. “You want too much of me, Vanessa. I suppose I should have known that would happen, but I’m just not ready. I can’t trust anyone with this secret. Believe me, beneath this mask I’m not who you think I am.”
“Please,” she whispered brokenly. “Just come back to bed. If you’re not ready to show me your face, that’s all right. I can be patient. Just please, don’t go.”
He squared his shoulders against the temptation. He’d been such a fool. He should have known he couldn’t hide behind the mask forever. He’d just hoped he had a little more time...
The mask taunted him from the chair where he’d laid it. Unable to bear the thought of putting it on right now, he left it there. He had several more at home.
“When will I see you again?” she asked as he strode toward the window.
“You won’t,” he answered, forcing a coldness he didn’t feel to his voice as he swung through the window, leaving his heart behind with the mask. “I’m never coming back.”
