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“Are you ready to talk?”
Chapter Eleven
Leo
Her nervousness was apparent, and the desire to make her feel comfortable had built into an unbearable need. I didn’t want her scared to talk to me, or even be around me. Some of the men I knew were dangerous, but most of the people I interacted with were no worse than I was.
Which was bad enough, I supposed, but we had rules. Appearances to keep, and all that. No one we weren’t on friendly terms with was allowed in the club, and certainly not on the balcony.
Cadence gave a quick jerk of her head in response to my question, the tension in her shoulders growing before she forced them to loosen. She did her best to hide it away, but I had seen her body at its most relaxed and I knew she was still anxious. The pulse in her wrist raced beneath my fingers, her pupils blown, her breaths coming short and fast.
I wanted her panting for reasons other than fear, and my plan would never work if she was scared of me or the club.
“Let’s go to my office.”
Her expression turned wary, but she didn’t fight me when I tugged on her hand to get her to follow me to the door that separated the public space from the rest of the club. Besides the theatre room, there were other areas that only a select few had seen. The club was a safe, mostly neutral place where we could meet with our associates or hold events like the one that had led to my night with Cadence.
Nodding to the guard who kept an eye on the door, we slipped through, the music and my purr fading as we strode down the hall. My office was the first one past the private meeting rooms that could be rented, and no one was allowed beyond it without express permission from me.
Turning to close the door behind us, I released Cadence’s hand. I’d planned to have her sit on the couch against the back wall so I could sit beside her, but she made a beeline for the chair in front of my desk and dropped into it like her legs couldn’t hold her up any longer.
Biting back a sigh, I unbuttoned my jacket as I moved around to take my seat. She’d remained quiet since we’d walked away from the bar, but I could feel the words ready to burst from her. She barely waited until my weight hit the chair.
“Why?”
I leaned back, clasping my hands in my lap as I raised a brow. Hers lowered as she sent me a scowl that had me fighting the urge to grin.
“Don’t play innocent, Leo. No one else is capable of what you did. I know it was you.”
“It was.”
“Why?”
I thought about my response before giving voice to it. I’d been trying to explain it to myself since Madame had made me reconsider what I was doing, because it was more than simply to get her attention. I needed to take care of Cadence, but she wouldn’t understand that yet.
“Because I wanted to. For you.”
My answer seemed to surprise her, and her eyes widened as she continued to stare at me. Her mouth worked but no sound came until she ground her teeth and sucked in a deep breath. Straightening her shoulders, she smoothed away the shock and confusion and her expression turned serious.
“How much do I owe you?”
My gaze dragged over her as I made her wait. Her pink lips were pinched in a thin line, brows set in what she probably hoped was a determined look. The jeans she had on were obviously a bit worn, but they hugged her curves in a way that left me throbbing the instant I’d seen her. She was wearing a simple pink T-shirt that only hinted at the bounty beneath, but she was more gorgeous than any of the scantily clad females that frequented the dancefloor below.
She was adorable, and far too sweet and innocent for this place.
And me.
I’d already decided I couldn’t go through with my original plan because it would leave her feeling like what she’d claimed I thought she was, so I had to hope I’d read her right and the new one would work.
“Nothing.”
I smiled at the blank look on her face that preceded the confusion and disappointment she tried to hide. It was clear she hadn’t expected me to say that, and whether she wanted to admit it or not, she’d been looking forward to me demanding payment from her.
My cock throbbed at the thought, but I ignored it. Now wasn’t the time for that. This was about more than sinking it into her again.
“W—What do you mean?”
Her shoulders curled forward as doubt filled her eyes and she seemed to shrink in on herself. As if she thought I no longer wanted her, and that was why I wasn’t demanding something in return.
