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I linked my arms over my chest. “How do you know?”
“I checked in with Frankie.”
“What about the salon?”
“It’s a crime scene. The police are collecting evidence.” He placed his hands on my shoulders, gently pressing the pads of his fingers into my skin. “There’s no need to worry, Grace. I’m taking care of everything.”
I stepped back. His hands fell off my shoulders, but their heat remained.
“I have an appointment at the clinic this Friday.”
“I remember.”
“So, you’re letting me go soon? Today?”
“We’re moving back to your house as soon as it’s ready. Gabe is installing a new security system as we speak. We’re making sure the house is bug-free and safe, so you’re free to move around your property as you wish.”
“No ‘but’?” I shook my head. “Wait—did you say ‘we’?”
“I’m not leaving your side, Grace, until Chad is behind bars. Or dead.”
“Dead? Who would kill him?”
“You’re not the only one who’s a target. The illegitimate siblings are coming after one another. Jeff Hartley was a gem, wasn’t he? The Hartley genes hold firm when it comes to money and fortune.”
“That murder on television last night—”
“Is the second related murder. There’s one more person on the list—and you.”
“Fuck.” I hadn’t realized I’d said it out loud. “How long do you think it will take?”
“You’re tired of me already?” Somewhere underneath the hair growth, I knew a dimple had sunk into his cheek.
“I’m a fan of taking my time, Grace.”
My body heated.
“But I’ll try to make this quick and painless.”
I didn’t want it quick and painless. I wanted it long and slow until my veins burned and my ovaries blossomed.
He bent down to my ear. “Your safety requires full cooperation.”
“Define ‘cooperation.’” My throat screamed for water.
His lips hovered a whisper away, and his fresh minty breath curled around my face. “You do as I tell you.”
I swallowed to clear the knot in my throat and opened my mouth as his command surged through my body, pulsing through my heart and veins. My body shuddered and the faint squish in my panties forced my knees together. I turned away from him and faced the walk-in closet.
“I have to change.”
I stepped inside, locked the door behind me, and leaning against the back.
What the hell was happening to me? I drowned my lungs with air, filling them with the smell of Hunter and his wooden-musk. His new rugged scent stirred long forgotten urges and needs. The constant warmth heated my blood and turned my body into an inferno. I pulled myself away from the door and rummaged through the rack of clothes, settling on a pair of breathable sweats and a tank top. The air was thick with my sweat and his smell. My hormones bounced through my body. The injections were getting to me, but by Friday, it would all be worth it.
I braced my hands on my knees.
“Control yourself, Grace. And breathe.”
