I didn’t want to need her, yet I needed her badly.
“Will you be spending a few days in the city?”
I looked over at Rocco, who was looking out over the dark water.
“Yeah, I think so,” I replied.
There was other business that I needed to attend to, and what better way than to have Leda here with me? I had a penthouse in the city, one that I hoped lived up to the sunset potential that rivaled what she wanted. Actually, I was looking forward to showing Leda my penthouse, giving her a glimpse of my life that she hadn’t seen yet.
I wanted her to believe that I was looking out for her well-being now, not just as her captor but as something… more.
“You’re starting to like her, aren’t you?”
“Fuck you,” I told Rocco, gripping the railing. “I don’t want to hear a fucking lecture from you.”
“Wouldn’t dream of lecturing you,” he chuckled. “What you willhearis a hale and hearty ‘I told you so’ when you realize that you can’t let her go.”
“I have no intention of letting her go,” I replied, the thought making me sick. Leda was mine, if nothing more than the fact that I paid for her.
“Oh, trust me, I know.” Rocco let a low whistle. “You’ve got it bad. I hope you know what you are doing.”
I pushed away from the railing. Sometimes I wanted to deck him, and sometimes, well, he had been there when many hadn’t. “I do. Trust me”
“While you’re here,” Rocco said. “Might not be a bad idea to shore up your support with the boys in the Battery. Y’know, considering wearehere.”
It wasn’t a bad idea, but the sound of approaching footsteps took my attention away. I turned to find Leda heading towards us.
Fuck, she took my breath away, dressed in one of those wrap dresses that I was going to have a fun time removing later on. Her hair was down, and there was a tentative smile on her lips that made me want to kiss her.
“Hey,” she said, giving me a once-over. “Is this okay?”
“It’s amazing,” I said and then turned to Rocco. “Get the fucking car.”
He rolled his eyes and walked away.
As Leda joined me, the smell of citrus that she gave off drove me wild on the inside. I allowed her to shower alone, even taking one of the guest bathrooms so that I could keep myself from running my hands all over her body.
Every time she was in my presence, I wanted her. Every moment beside her was another moment I wanted to spend buried within her.
I took her hand and felt her trembling, causing me to pause. “What’s wrong?” I asked immediately.
She looked everywhere but at me, focusing on the water over my shoulder. “What are we really doing, Lucas? I mean, what amIdoing here?”
Hell, I didn’t have an answer for her. “I’m taking you to dinner,” I said.
Her eyes found mine, and I swore I saw another person in them, one that I didn’t recognize at all. “You don’t have to lie to me,” she said softly.
Unable to help myself, I released her hand and framed her face, forcing her to see past the hard shell of a man that I was. “That’s it. I swear it, Leda. Is it so hard to believe?”
“It is,” she whispered, fear shining in her eyes.
I didn’t know how to turn her fear into a means of trusting me, but I was going to fucking do it one step at a time. “Trust me. I know it’s a hell of a lot to take in, but I’m not going to hurt you. Not anymore. I promise.”
And I meant it. I didn’t want to see Leda hurt.
Instead of responding, she leaned in and brushed her lips over mine. “All right,” she mumbled against my lips. “I’ll trust you.”
Some of the tension eased out of my shoulders, and I gently kissed her before stepping back. “Let’s go.”