I swallowed hard.
Lying was useless now. But maybe… just maybe, I could still steer him away fromwhyI was really here.
“Fine. I was curious.” I crossed my arms defensively. “Can you blame me? I’ve been trapped in this museum of a house for a week straight with nothing to do but shower, eat, and sleep.”
Dante moved toward me, and I took a step back toward his desk. But he kept stalking forward, like he knew the less the distance between us, the more my brain worked overtime, making it harder to lie.
Every step he took made my nerve endings tingle in warning. Or was it anticipation? I was so damn confused, I couldn’t quite tell the difference anymore.
“So you decided to entertain yourself by rifling through my personal files?” He didn’t sound angry, which somehow made this whole situation even more confusing. He sounded almost… amused.
“I’m going stir-crazy in here,” I said, stepping back until my legs hit his chair. “I haven’t been outside in days except maybe to swim sometimes. I also haven’t spoken to anybody who hasn’t been you and your staff.” I gave him a pointed look. “I don’t know if you’ve met yourself or your staff, but between your scowling and their silent nodding, I might as well start talking to the plants.”
“The fiddle leaf in the conservatory is a great listener.” He bit his lower lip like he was trying to hold back a laugh.
“This isn’t funny,” I snapped. “You may have saved me from those auction creeps, but let’s not pretend this is anything other than what it is. You bought me. You’re just a different kind of keeper.”
I saw the hurt that flashed across his face then, like I might as well have slapped him. I felt that familiar guilt rise up in me, an emotion so distant, back from when I hated hurting him.
But I shoved it back down. I knew I shouldn’t have implied what I just did, but god, I was furious, and in my quest to get information for my father, I never truly acknowledged how I ended up here, did I?
Dante still watched me in silence, his expression pained.
“I can’t leave or call anyone,” I continued, trying to keep the bitterness from my voice. “What am I if not a prisoner with a nicer bed and better food?”
Dante sighed and ran a hand through his hair before nodding slowly. “You’re right.”
Wait, what? My eyes widened in surprise. Dante Lebedev admitting I was right about something? Was I hallucinating?
“You need to get out of this house,” he continued. “Get some fresh air and loosen up.”
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. “You’re kidding, right?”
His lips curved into that half-smile that used to make my knees weak. Still did, if I was being honest with myself, which I absolutely refused to be.
He pushed off the desk and moved closer, so close I could see the lines near his eyes when he smiled. “I’m not joking. You can go out, I swear. How about we start with that dinner you owe me?
I shook my head immediately. “No way. I never said anything about dinnerwith you.”
“Why not? You just said you’re going crazy in here.”
“Because I don’t want to have dinner with you,” I squealed in protest.
“You’d rather keep talking to the plants?” he challenged.
I pursed my lips. He had me there, and he knew it. The smug bastard.
“What are you saying? The only way I can go out is to have dinner with you?”
“Of course not,” he agreed too easily. “If no dinner, how about something else? I’ll make you a deal,” he added suddenly.
“I don’t make deals with criminals,” I shot back automatically.
He ignored that and took one step closer, his gaze falling to my lips. “One kiss. Give me one kiss, and you can go anywhere you want.”
I froze. “What?”
“You heard me.” His eyes were practically glowing with challenge. “One kiss, and you get a whole night of freedom.”
