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EIGHTEEN
REBECCA
I followed Julian holdinga basket with his uninjured arm. With the other hand, he tipped boxes of bandages into the basket. Then alcohol, then antibiotic cream. “That should hold me over.”
“Good.” I turned to leave, wanting to get the hell out of there.
“Wait.” Julian gripped my wrist, wincing in pain.
When I turned to face him, his blue eyes inched over my body in a once-over I felt. “What?”
“You...” His jaw jumped, eyeing me. “You don’t have anything with you?”
“Nice of you to notice.” Brushing my teeth took a third-row backseat to staying alive. “Gian had a packed bag for me.”
“I’m here now.” Julian’s possessive tone sparked something in me. “I’ll get you whatever stuff you need.”
“Stuff?”
“The things a girl needs.”
“A girl?”
He pushed his body against mine. “Stop being a brat.”
A rush of emotion took me by complete surprise, it felt like I’d been slapped. On the ass. Spanked. He’d rejected me once and I stuffed away how that had stung me.
“Takes one to know one.” I brought my mouth to his.
I’d felt unsettled back then. Playing sex games with Giancarlo. Still hurting from Sebastien dumping me five years ago. And trying to make, of all people, Anthony fall in love with me so he’d convince his father, the most influential partner in the Sunrise deal to kill it. Nothing we had during those weeks of playing a game was really serious.
Julian had crept into my thoughts again and again as a solid steady man who could have given me what I’d thought I wanted my whole life. Love. From one man. The kisses we shared stayed locked in my memory.
Fate had other plans for me. And I’d never been happier. So where were all these feelings again for Julian coming from? He’d said he grabbed me to protect me because it was his job. The way he looked at me felt deeper, more visceral than that.
Giancarlo, Anthony, and Sebastien agreed to share me. I doubted they’d let me bring another man into what we had. A federal agent, no less.
“What’s going on in that head, right now?” Julian asked, tucking me back against him. “Talk to me.”
“Nothing.” I swallowed and glanced around. “Since you already think I’m a brat, I don’t think this store has the kind of makeup and toiletries I buy.”
“When was the last time you were in a store like this?”
“Never.”
He stepped back. “You’ve never been in a big box store?”
“No.”
He exhaled and took my hand. Walking me a few aisles over, he said, “You’re gonna have to rough it.”
Staring down a skincare aisle, I pursed my lips surprised and impressed with the well-known names. Although, not the three-hundred-dollar jars of industrial strength moisturizers I usually bought. I recognized some brands with celebrity spokeswomen who swore by the stuff.
“If it’s good enough for a spoiled actress...” I grabbed a handful of makeup remover wipes, cleanser, and hydro boost cream.
In the next aisle, I found makeup by the same brand.
“Can I make a suggestion?” Julian leaned against the shelves watching me decide on a mascara.
“If you had a sister, I’d say yes. But...”
He stroked my cheek. “You don’t need makeup. You’re...”
“Yeah?” I leaned into his touch, my stomach doing soft flip flops. Perhaps I was in shock. From the assassination attempt, then being drugged, then held against my will for all intents and purposes. I felt so raw and exposed. But also, alive.
“You know you’re goddamn beautiful, you don’t need me to tell you.” Julian’s eyes bore into me.
“Maybe I do. I didn’t grow up with men falling at my feet. I had Sebastien and then...” I turned away, the pain of losing him followed by years of being ignored by every man with a pulse still stung.
“You were promised to Anthony. That’s what kept other men away, Rebecca. No other reason, I promise you,” he whispered with a warm tickle of breath that soothed every ache humming through my body.
I cleared my throat. “I got the last laugh on that one, didn’t I?” Running my fingers along the shelf, I made my way to the back of the aisle. “Now I have Seb back, plus Anthony, and Giancarlo.”
“How does that work exactly?” Julian came up behind me again, pressing into me. “You told me they take turns with you. Honestly, Becca, it sounds like they’re using you.”
“No. They’re. Not.” I pushed him away. “They love me. Give me some credit to know that.”
“Based on what?”
My mind went blank and tears welled up.
“Becca, sweetheart, I’m sorry.” His arms wrapped around me. “I’m not trying to be a dick.”
“Epic failure.”
He held my chin and brought his mouth close to mine. “I’m risking everything by being with you. I’m not supposed to interfere like this. But I’m here.”
“Gian was out there looking for me. I’m sure of it.” I sniffed. “You were supposed to let me call him and leave a message where I was. Prove to me he wouldn’t show up. You drugged me and shoved me in a trunk. Did you at least drive around and look for him? Weren’t you curious?”
He stared at me, emotions playing out on his face. He could lie. I had no way to know. His eyes hit the floor. “No. I didn’t.”
“So you don’t know.” I nodded, looking at the shampoos. “But I do. You didn’t see their faces watching the contract price to kill me go up and up.”
He blinked. “You’re right.”
“Thank you.” I’d take my victories wherever I could get them. With very little thought, I dumped shampoo, conditioner, a hairbrush, and hairspray into the basket Julian had been carrying.
“You didn’t answer my question.” His warm breath fanned the shell of my ear. “How do they share you?”
Fabulously. Deliciously. And dirty.
He called me a brat so...
I purred, “How do you think?”
“I’m not a stranger to porn. You mean, you take them two at once?” He cleared his throat. “You like...anal?”
I ached to tell Julian all the details of our decadent lovemaking and watch him burn for me. So mad with lust that he’d let me go. Or let me call Gian. Why did I have to keep resorting to using my body? That stopped now.
“You know what? It’s none of your business. I kissed you. And not innocently. I hadn’t committed to them yet then. You stopped. You had your chance.”
He leaned back. “You’re right. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to. You were being watched by the bureau. I couldn’t...”
“And now? Never mind.” I glanced down at myself. The grime from the subway clung to me. How had Julian gotten aroused by me? Surely, I smelled awful. Grabbing some deodorant, then toothpaste, and a toothbrush, I finished with that aisle and marched across a wide lane. “I need a change of clothes.”
“Whatever you need, Becca.”
I scanned the colors in front of me. “If I get something just for tonight, any chance you can take me to a mall for something nicer tomorrow?”
He thought about that and brushed a hand down his face. “Becca...”
“What else do you plan to do with me?”
The look he gave me sent shivers through me. Oh...
“Hide you. Keep you out of sight. Until we find out who put the hit on you.”
“Right.” I touched the frilly colorful top hanging on a rack, surprised how soft it was. “I gotta say, this stuff is damn cute.”
“Sure is.”
