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I wait because I can imagine what he’ll say, and I don’t want to hear them. “You’re not objective with this man. How can you be? I’ve known you a long time. There’s a light in your eyes. It all has to do with him. I get it. But if you ask him about this NDA, and he is withholding something pertinent, then he will have more time to bury it.”
He’s right. “But I trust him.” Or is it that I want to trust him?
“Ani, you don’t forget a non-disclosed amount because if the negotiated settlement is a fraction of the asking, there’s no way you can.”
“True, but NDAs are typically not filed. They’re kept by the two parties involved and can be used later for litigation if they breach it. How did you find it?”
“Ani, you know I can’t tell you my source, just know it’s credible.”
We say our goodbyes and end the call, making plans to meet in the morning.
Could he really have done this to me? No, there’s no way. But, if he sat on this, it’s hard to ignore his guilt.
Anthony escorts me to the car in the adjacent parking garage, and I’m quiet, mulling over the possible reasons Luca kept this to himself. I’m lost in my own world of deceit and lies when Anthony comes to a stop. I open the door before he has a chance to circle around to help me out. Stepping from the car, my brownstone doesn’t greet me, but the tall building of Luca’s. I’m about to question Anthony when the deep jet-black eyes of Luca’s stare at me, tugging my whole body into his.
“What am I doing here?” I ask, out of sorts.
“You’re not sleeping by yourself. I need to be next to you.”
If he were to tell me this earlier, I would have agreed. But I can’t look at the man right now. I don’t know how to be objective. I’m two people, one wanting to believe Luca because I love him, and the lawyer looking at the case objectively. I’m not sure how to separate myself, or if I can.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR
Frosty. This is the way I’d describe Heaven since last night. There’s no way of knowing what’s wrong because every time I ask her, I’m given a tight smile, a peck on the cheek, and a simple, “I’m fine.”
She’d thought she’d stay at her place, but I’d not sleep without her near me. As soon as I held her in my arms, her body became stiff. It was obvious she wanted to leave, but she’d get an argument from me about it.
When I began kissing her last night, she rolled over, claiming she was tired.No sex, off the table,were her exact words, and she never denies my advances. I’ve tossed and turned all night and when she stirs, my eyes follow her every move.
Slipping from the bed, she’s quiet, pulling for one of the several dresses she brings over each week. The shower turns on, and before I can decide to join her, she’s done in less than three minutes. Steam enters the bedroom and she slips into the hallway. Her purse was left in the kitchen last night, and while she backtracks around the living room, I slide out of bed, naked as the day I was born.
The click of her heels alerts me she’s about to flee. The front door opens, and I slam it before she can slip through.
“Nope, you’re not leaving, not now.”
Her hands cross at her chest, pushing her cleavage up in her black wrap dress. “You’re not letting me go? Is that so? I think you forget you’re not my Dom outside of the bedroom.”
My body blocks the door, not moving. “Oh, Heaven. Don’t forget I’m always your Dom. And if I have to fling you over my shoulders to get you back in the bedroom where I’m your official Dom, I will.”
She tilts her head to the side as if she’s challenging me to make good on my promise.
“I’ve done it once, and I sure as fuck will do it again.” But there’s only one way she can stop me and she knows it. All she has to do is use her safeword. “What the hell is going on?” I ask.
“Nothing, Luc. Maybe you’re unaware, but I have a hell of a case I’m working on. It’s all-consuming and perhaps I’m not in the mood for you and your bossy ass this morning.” Her voice becomes louder with each syllable she utters.
“So, you’re going to play that game with me today?” I pull the door back, standing behind it. “We’re not done, Heaven.” She turns her head to me, then back to her exit. “I hope you’re ready to talk like an adult when you return because we’ll be discussing it at length.”
She’s out the door, twisting her head back at me. “Who says I’ll be here tonight?” Her goddamned fucking mouth. I’ll find a way to shut it up.
“Oh, you’ll be back in my bedorI’m coming to you, Heaven, and believe me when I say that’s a fucking promise.”
She’s down the hallway, her back to me, her middle finger in the air. I’ve never had a reason to put my girl over my knee. But, she’s begging for it right now.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE
Ibarely escaped Luca this morning. And when I use the word escape, it’s not because I’m scared of him. He’d never hurt me. It’s his steady gaze, his blown pupils when he’s aroused, and that goddamn fucking tone of his. Everything he is has me wanting to fall at his feet and lay my burdens there. He’d gladly take them.
I’m in a perpetual battle with myself. He’s never done anything but consistently prove to me I can trust him. Yet, Tuck is right. I can’t be objective, and I’d investigate this without telling the client, if Luca was simply a client.
