“Come with me,” I say.
“Don’t make me do this. Please.”
“Just come with me.”
“Where?”
“You can lie down. Alone.”
She looks up at me suspiciously. And she has every right to.
I walk down to one of the guest rooms and open the door, then wait for her to follow me.
She enters without a word.
“No one will bother you for a few hours. I need to go but Cash will be inside if you need anything,” I say.
She looks around, refuses to look at me as she sits on the bed and hugs her arms around her middle.
“Okay?” I ask.
She looks up at me. “Is there a lock?”
I nod.
I don’t mention that I have the key.21CristinaI listen to his receding footsteps and only relax after ten minutes of complete silence. I look around the room. It’s luxurious with a king-size bed layered with a plush comforter and pillows in cream. The drapes along the two windows match the bedclothes.
From the one closest to me, I can see the busy street below, the storefronts, and the rush of people. It’s oddly comforting even though I know I’m up here alone. That I’m not one of them.
In the distance, I glimpse Central Park. What I’d give to go for a walk there without Damian or any guards or even the knowledge of their existence.
I go into the attached bathroom and wash my hands, then splash water on my face. I look tired. I am tired.
When I return to the bedroom, I take off my shoes, pull the covers back on the bed, and lie down. I don’t expect to sleep, but I must, because when I open my eyes, it’s to a soft tickle along my temple. I try to brush it away only to feel it again as I settle back into sleep.
I blink my eyes open, momentarily disoriented. A deep orange glow streams in from the window. I sit up, rub my eyes, and see Damian standing over me, only to realize what that tickling must have been and suddenly hyper aware of what I must look like.
He steps back and stands there in all his beautiful darkness, sliding his hands into his pockets, making my belly flutter when it should revolt.
I swallow, then shift my gaze because I’m at a disadvantage again. I’m always at a disadvantage with him.
“What time is it?”
“A little after seven.”
I slept the whole afternoon?
“There’s someone here to see you.”
I pull the blanket up, holding it between us like a shield. “Another doctor?” I sneer.
“Your cousin.”
I’m confused. “Liam?”
“He’s inside.”
“Liam is here?”
Damian nods, looking almost sheepish. No, not quite that. But not as much an asshole as he usually is.
“Is this a joke?”
“Why would it be a joke?”
“Because you like messing with me.”
“It’s not a joke, Cristina.”
I push the covers back, and for the first time since that stormy night when I first laid eyes on Damian, I smile. I leap out of the bed and run out into the hallway.
Liam sees me at the same time I see him.
“Liam!” I bound toward him, letting him catch me. We hug each other so hard that tears spring from my eyes.
“Hey, Cousin,” he says, sounding so much more casual and relaxed than me.
I step back and look him over. It’s been days, but it feels like years since I’ve seen him.
Damian appears in my periphery. I turn to him, one hand holding Liam’s, replacing the happy smile with something harsher just for him.
He looks at us, only I get the feeling he knows he’s not welcome, and for some reason, it bothers me. I’ve never been one to exclude anyone. I’ll go out of my way to make sure people feel welcome.
But this is Damian Di Santo, I remind myself. Even if he did just give me time with Liam. And he isn’t welcome.
“You have one hour,” he says. Turning, he walks down the hall and disappears behind one of the closed doors.22DamianI strip off my suit jacket and undo my tie, feeling claustrophobic. Elise won’t be able to get the stain off the sleeve of my dress shirt. I should have known better than to wear white.
Unbuttoning the top buttons and undoing the cuffs, I pull it over my head and drop it into the trashcan.
I think of Cristina then. Sleeping so soundly, she didn’t hear the lock turn. I’ve watched her sleep before. I sound like a creep even to myself, but I like the look of her when she’s so relaxed. When she’s not fighting me.
I’ve had my share of women. Overindulged even. But this time, with this particular woman, things are different. The circumstances make it so, obviously, and maybe it’s just the fact that for almost the past decade of my life, I’ve known this time would come. I’ve known she’d be mine, but it’s something else. Something I feel deep in my bones.