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“You mean when you kissed me?”
I almost choked on my salad. “I kissedyou? I seem to recall you standing on your tiptoes and leaning into me.”
She laughed. “So you’re suggesting that I totally made the first move?”
“Yes.” I grinned. “Clearly you did. It’s okay. I know I’m irresistible.”
She laughed so hard she snorted a little. Holy hell, why was that sexy?It’s sexy because I’m horny. That was it. Nothing more. At least I knew I wasn’t the only one affected. Diana was downing her wine fairly quickly. Was she nervous?
“You really are full of yourself, aren’t you?” She stood and went to the counter, then brought back the bottle of wine she’d already opened to let breathe.
I frowned. “So youdon’tthink I’m sexy?” She coughed as her face flamed again, and I grinned. “I’ll save you from answering that. Of course I am.”
“And so modest too.”
I shrugged. “We all know our strengths. But seriously—” I cleared my throat. “I didn’t mean to take advantage of the situation. You know you’re safe here. I would never—”
Her eyes went wide and she immediately shook her head. “No. I didn’t think— That wasn’t what I thought at all. It just”—she licked her lips again, and I had to bite mine to keep from groaning—“happened.”
I nodded, just on the verge of telling her that if she kept doing that lip thing, it was going to happen again. But we had other things to discuss. I needed to know more about her. Anything. So far all I knew was the surface stuff, and I wanted to go deeper. But given what she’d already been through, I wanted her to give me that information willingly. I didn’t want to have to go digging for it.
“So I know you said you didn’t want to call anyone before, but you must have friends or family who are worried about you.”
Diana finished her last sip of wine and immediately poured another glass.
She shook her head. “I do have one friend, but she has a family. Little ones. I’d have to explain my bruises and my situation. So it’s basically like I have no one.”
I nodded. “You know, I find that even when people think they have no one, there’s at least one person they can call. I don’t like the idea of you being all alone. Not with that asshole still out there.”
She swallowed hard. Her gaze shifting to her plate, she picked at the rest of her salad. “I’m fine. I left. Right now he doesn’t know where I am. So maybe that’s for the best. If he tries to check my phone or something, it’s down at the bottom of the ravine. There’s no way he can find me.”
I watched her closely. My questioning was making her edgy.
“Diana, you can trust me. I can help you. Tell me his name. I have friends in law enforcement. They could pay him a visit. I’ll attest to the bruising that I saw on your body. Guys like that shouldn’t be allowed to walk the earth. No one should ever put their hands on you. He should pay for that.”
The ferocity of my anger surprised even me. And her gaze fluttered up to meet mine.
She parted her lips as if to say something, and then she shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about him. I just want to relax. Drink some wine.”
I glanced at my glass, the maroon liquid still untouched. I paused and then looked closer. There was a bit of residue on the rim. Was that… no. My heart protested even as my mind and more importantly my training blared a warning.
“You know, I never did ask what you got while you were shopping.”
Diana paused with her glass halfway to her mouth. I caught a glimpse of something—maybe panic—in her eyes. Then she shook her head.
“Shoes. Remember, I told you when we got back. I got some sandals so I’d have something nicer to wear in case we went to see your friends again. I felt out of place so dressed down last time.” But her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. “They’re in the living room. Want to see?”
I shook my head. “After dinner.”
Diana fidgeted with her napkin, smoothing it out and then replacing it under her silverware. I noticed that her eyes kept going back to my glass.
What was she waiting for, exactly? I was pretty damn sure I knew. Although I couldn’t think of a single reason Diana might want to hurt me.
Let’s just make this easier on everyone, I thought.
I took the smallest bite of salad and then reached for the wineglass, knocking my fingers against the stem roughly.
* * *
