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I glanced back at the set of doors leading to my father’s office, certain I was being watched. I could feel Francois’ eyes, the heated way he’d looked at me moments before sending an array of goosebumps down my arms. I wondered if he’d been able to sense my desire, to gather a scent of my damp panties.
God, I hoped my father hadn’t seen the way we looked at each other or things would get ugly quickly.
Francois had made it clear that what we’d shared had meant nothing to him. That would make hating him that much easier. And who the fuck was the man to act as if my profession, the hard work I’d put into getting ahead of thousands of other hopeful girls was frivolous? Damn the fucking asshole. I’d been blinded by his aura as a child.
However, I was no longer that innocent girl with wide eyes, believing the world was mostly good. I’d learned the hard way that men only wanted you for two things: sex and making them wealthier. Fuck him. I could easily stay away. I didn’t need a man for anything in my life. Not. One. Thing.
Then why was my skin still flushed, the level of heat continuing to increase? Oh, this was so bad. So very bad.
I kept myself purposely turned away, easing into a lounge chair that faced the pool instead. I had no idea at this point what I was going to do, but I knew one thing for certain. I couldn’t spend days and nights around the man. I’d lose my mind.
Just seeing him again, as well as the shocked, furious recognition in his eyes at what I’d done would haunt me. I reminded myself he’d made our non-relationship perfectly clear. That would make this easier. Yes, it would.
Or so I prayed.
As I settled into the chair, trying to ease my rapid breathing, I sensed a presence and refused to look over my shoulder. When I felt something cold being rubbed across my arm, I shivered, and I knew he could see it. “What are you doing? Just leave me alone.”
“We need to talk, Delaney.”
His deep voice, the sexy baritone that had lingered in my dreams now had an icy web crisscrossing my entire body. When I heard a scraping sound, I shielded my eyes and opened them, holding a scowl on my face. I noticed a drink in his hand complete with celery and laughed. “Drinking so early?”
He sat down on the chair he’d dragged closer, taking a sip from the small straw used as a stirrer. What annoyed the hell out of me was the look of amusement on his face. It was just as sexy as his muscular body. “Never too early for a little spice.”
“You’re horrible and you’re enjoying this.”
His dark chuckle sent a wave of tingles all the way to my toes. And the way he was looking at me brought me close to trying to slap it off his face. But the moment his expression turned somber, the chill took on an entirely different meaning.
“There’s a monster after you. I obviously need to make that perfectly clear to you. I don’t like how the case is being handled.”
“Let me guess. You’re going to pull strings.”
He clenched his jaw. “If I could, I would. Unfortunately, that’s not possible. However, I do know monsters and if he believes you might be the only living witness, he’ll stop at nothing to track you down.”
“You would know monsters very well,” I said, hating myself for doing so. When he said nothing, just stared at me with his insanely gorgeous eyes, I felt more like a shit than before. “The killer doesn’t know my identity.”
“Are you certain about that? He’s a hunter. I know them well. They never give up. And he was inside your apartment. That meant he had your address, access to who lives there nothing but a phone call away. If he makes the connection then he’ll check the airports, finding out you took a flight to New Orleans. I assume you did so under your real name?”
Swallowing hard, I nodded, another chill skating down my spine. I couldn’t seem to rid myself of the anger, wanting nothing more than to take it out on him. “You ought to know about hunters since you’re a predator as well.” I wasn’t entirely certain why I was lashing out at him other than I was scared and hated myself for what had happened. For the fact I’d basically deceived him by not telling him who I was.
“You’re right, Delaney. Iama predator. It takes one to catch one. Your father knows that as well.”
Why did I have the feeling he’d have no issues killing the man who’d almost taken my life? Even worse, why was it that I’d easily cheer him on for doing so? Judge and jury. So alpha. So dominating. And so wrong. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Why were you at the club?”
He was seriously asking me. I’d asked myself the same question several times over but that didn’t give him the right to meddle in my life.
“I’m trying to help you, but I can’t do that if you continue to ignore my questions.”
He was right. “While you think my life is likely nothing but parties and drunken fests, the truth is that I work very long hours often in the freezing cold or blasting heat just to get the perfect shot. I endure being photographed a lot by paparazzi, something I can’t stand. Everyone wants to discover you in a torrid affair or in a scandalous situation, so they garner their fifteen minutes of fame. That means I can’t do anything by myself or out of the ordinary. Most of the time, I stayed in my apartment. The club was something my roommate told me about. We went together once. I adored the anonymity, the fact nobody gave a shit who or what I was. I’d had a particularly stressful week, a horrible photographer treating me like a child. I’d wanted to do something. Just for me. You know? Ginny couldn’t use a special invitation she’d gotten so I thought, what the heck.”
He didn’t blink, didn’t say a word for a few seconds. “You were driving your roommate’s car as well?”
“Yeah. Mine was in the shop. Her boyfriend was coming to pick her up so she didn’t mind allowing me to borrow it.”
“A kink club.”
“For a masquerade night. I was allowed to be anyone I wanted to be. It was a feeling of utter freedom.”
