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‘Xandro—’
His eyes gleamed at her use of his name. But he still shook his head. ‘You’re feeling emotional. You need to calm down a little before you speak to him.’
Her grip tightened on the cup. ‘Don’t tell me how to feel.’
‘Tell me you’re not going to placate him the moment he answers—if he deigns to answer—and I’ll give your phone back.’
‘Isn’t that what you want? For me to speak to him and try to find out where he is?’
He remained silent for a long stretch. Then he shook his head. ‘We’re past the cat and mouse game of Guess Where Ben Is. I made it clear that the only way he’ll escape my full wrath is if he comes to me. There’s no going back from there. As for you, your hero worship needs to stop.’
She gasped. ‘How dare you?’
He didn’t so much as blink in the face of her anger. ‘I don’t need three guesses to know what’s got you rattled. We kissed. You enjoyed it. Then you felt guilty afterwards. You’re not great at hiding your emotions. Some of it was captured on camera. Now you want to ensure your brother isn’t troubled by it. Sorry, pethi mou. I can’t risk you attempting to alleviate that guilt by confessing our agreement to your brother.’
That the thought had crossed her mind was neither here nor there. But the razor-sharp look he sent her told her he’d guessed her reactions correctly.
‘You may be great at ruses like this, but I detest lying.’
‘Well, then, enjoy your coffee and allow me to save you from yourself.’
‘Xandro...’
His breath expelled a little harsher this time. ‘You say my name like that and all I want to do is kiss you.’
‘Do you ever not say what you’re thinking?’ she demanded, partly in exasperation, partly because her body, like the slave it’d clearly become, was already reacting to his words.
‘Where’s the fun in that?’
She firmed her lips. ‘Having a conversation with you is like trying to stop a freight train with a leaf.’
His grin returned. ‘I’m touched you find me so formidable.’
‘It wasn’t a compliment. I meant it was a useless exercise I should think about avoiding altogether,’ she said, although she had the most absurd urge to smile back at him.
He shrugged, seemingly unaffected by her glare. After another moment, he straightened. ‘Come with me.’
‘Why would I do that?’
‘Because we’ve had our first fight of the day and it’s not even five a.m. We have a long day ahead of us, so let’s counter it with a bit of pleasure, too. Unless you have something against pleasure?’ he asked with a wicked glint in his eyes.
She wanted to refuse but curiosity won out. She followed him across the vast double-ceilinged living room to the east corner, where two large windows met. Beneath them the lights of The Strip continued to dance and sparkle in the approaching dawn. But that wasn’t
where Xandro’s attention was centred.
He pointed to a spot on the east horizon between two sprawling luxury hotels. ‘Watch,’ he murmured.
For several seconds all she saw was grey gloom. Then the purest pulse of yellow burst from behind a mountain. Her breath caught, the sight of the sunrise so pure and gorgeous she gasped. ‘Beautiful,’ she whispered.
His gaze shifted a fraction and caught hers in the window’s reflection. It stayed on her for a moment before he murmured, ‘Yes.’
Sage couldn’t explain the shiver that charged through her. Her senses had been jumping all over the place since she’d woken up. Xandro’s hot and cold play wasn’t helping. His smile scrambled her senses. But he didn’t attempt to hide his ruthless streak.
She wanted to say something. Thank him for showing her the spectacular sunrise. But she couldn’t find words that wouldn’t be flippant or reveal the emotions running riot through her. Nor could she dismiss the effect his half naked body was having on her.
‘You’re fidgeting,’ he observed after five minutes. The sun was now a whole dazzling vision in the sky, anointing the sleepless city with a new day.
‘I’m...’ She stopped, then broached the only subject she could without confronting her confounding feelings. ‘What if Ben never returns?’
