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Emily gives me a wide grin as she claps her hands and tucks them below her chin.
“And he’s back, so you better try to make it last, which means you have to do what I’ve just told you.”
I sigh. “Okay. Okay. I’ll go to him tomorrow and tell him.”
Mike gave me his number, so I guess I can call him to pick me up and take me to Dax. I can’t deny that I want to see him again anyway.
Besides, the sooner this is over with, the sooner Emily will stop pestering me about it.
~
Mike picks me up and drops me off at Dax’s house.
It’s deceptively simple. It looks just like a bungalow from the front, and yet the house seems to go and on, separating into corridors only to combine again, going up and down, enclosing green spaces. It’s almost like a maze, a delightful maze with a surprise around every corner.
Duke is one. After coming out of a room filled with paintings, one of which looked like it might be of Dax’s mother, I find him lying down under a table with long legs. When he sees me, he lifts his head.
“Hey,” I greet him.
He comes out of his hiding place, causing the table to shift. Thank goodness it doesn’t have a vase or anything breakable on it. After he sits in front of me, I pet his head.
“Hey there. Missed me?”
In response, he lies down at my feet.
“Oh, you did, didn’t you?”
I kneel down so I can scratch his belly and he opens his mouth to give me a smile. I find myself smiling in turn.
Dogs. Sometimes I envy them because they don’t ask for much and when they do get it, they seem like the happiest creatures on earth. I wonder how it feels to be that carefree and content.
The sound of a throat clearing draws my attention. I lift my head and see a woman in a bright red dress who looks to be in her thirties standing at the end of the corridor. Large rubies hang from her ears.
Where did she come from? More importantly, who is she? The housekeeper? A maid? I don’t think so.
“Hello.” I stand up slowly. “I’m sorry. Mike said I could go around the house and – ”
“You might want to wash your hands,” she tells me in a snobbish tone. “You never know what germs a creature that licks its own ass might be carrying.”
I rub my hands together. She snorts.
Okay. So she’s not someone who likes dogs. Or germs. And she kind of looks like she doesn’t like me.
I sure hope she isn’t someone whose approval I need.
“I’m Jenna Holt,” I introduce myself.
I’d offer my hand, but I know she wouldn’t take it.
“I’m sorry. You are…?”
“Are you here to see Dax?” she asks me. “Because if you are, I’m afraid my darling isn’t here.”
My eyebrows go up. Her darling?
“You can leave a message,” she says. “I’ll be sure to relay it. I can even give him a kiss for you.”
I tense. Don’t tell me she’s in a relationship with Dax. I thought he said he hadn’t been with any woman since he broke up with me.
“I’m sorry, but I’m a little confused as to how you know Dax,” I say honestly. “I’m afraid he’s never mentioned you.”
“Oh, I’m not surprised. Dax is very good at keeping secrets.”
She knows that?
She grins as she walks towards me like a model on the catwalk, her earrings swaying. Or is it like a cat inching towards its prey?
“Yes, I know him very well.”
Too well for my liking.
“For instance…” She leans forward to whisper in my ear. “I know that he likes to take control in bed.”
My eyes grow wide. What the hell?
“Jenna?”
I turn around at the sound of Dax’s voice. As our eyes meet, he smiles. Then he frowns as his gaze shifts to the woman beside me.
“Chloe? What are you doing here?”
My heart sinks even further. He knows her?
Chapter Nine
Dax
Chloe’s green eyes narrow. “Is that the kind of greeting you’re supposed to give me, Dax?”
She taps a finger against her cheek.
“Come on. Give me a kiss like you used to. Or are you shy because your lady friend is here?”
She casts a jeering glance at Jenna, who gives me a confused look. I take her hand and pull her to my side.
“Jenna is my girlfriend,” I correct Chloe.
“Oh.”
“And Jenna, this is Chloe Manson. She’s one of my father’s…”
Whores? Escorts? Toys?
“Lady friends.”
Chloe frowns at the term as she plays with one of her earrings but doesn’t supply a better one.
“And she’s leaving,” I add.
She’s not even supposed to be here. I don’t know how she got in – I’m guessing she used her charms on a member of the household staff or security, who I’ll deal with later – but I want her out.
