Wariness prickled over her skin. “I beg your pardon?”
“A safety net, that’s all. I—”
Realization struck her, stealing her breath for a long, tense moment. She lifted a single finger in the air to silence him before he dug his grave any deeper. It would be far too easy to castrate him right now, especially with his cock being so accessible. “How long?”
Boudreaux’s innocent expression didn’t quite hit the mark; a rarity for him. “Hmm?”
“Don’t even try to pretend you don’t know what I mean. Answer the damn question—how long have you been fuckingstalkingme?”
“Stalking is such a negative word, Bennie…” He lifted a shoulder, unconcerned that he’d violated her privacy. “The moment you walked out of my door for the last time.”
Holy shit. The shock almost buckled her knees and sat her on the floor; he’d been following her all this time? No, not him, she thought with dawning fury. A man like him was damn nearomnipotent, but even he couldn’t build an empire and stalk a woman like a demented lunatic at the same time. “Fucking Frank. You sicced that leech on me?”
“Yet he thinks so highly of you.” Boudreaux sighed. “Francoise has been exceptionally dedicated to his duties, ensuring you were safe and protected during our separation. Several of your potential suitors did not have your welfare in mind.”
“And I presume Frank took care of them, did he?” She was surprised steam wasn’t blowing out of her ears from the pressure building in her brain.
He had the utter gall to smirk at her. “No, my little beignet. You did that yourself.”
“I did no such—”
“Think carefully before you deny anything, Mistress. Francois was simply a silent bodyguard, ready to guide you home when you were ready to return. Hate him if you must, but he did not interfere with your life—I have all of his daily reports filed in my office if you’d like to read them.”
Violet barely resisted strangling him with her bare hands. She hated them both right now—Boudreaux for being a pompous ass, and his little sidekick for remaining in her life long after she thought she’d gotten rid of the lecherous prick. “Is he still watching me?”
“I sent him on a well-deserved vacation for a few weeks. He was angry when he lost your trail out of Louisiana and punished himself by working his ass off over the past year to find you again.”
There was no sense of betrayal—Frank was, always had been, would forever be loyal to Boudreaux and only Boudreaux. They’d been friends since they were young, pulling each other into trouble and fishing each other out again. They’d remained the best of friends even after Boudreaux began amassing his wealth, with Frank choosing to stick by his side through thick and thin.
What her ex saw in him, she didn’t know, because all she’d ever been able to see was a squirrelly, perverted, devious, repulsive weasel of a man who did nothing but leech off Boudreaux and leer at her as though he spent his free time jacking off to images of her naked.
He creeped her out so much that she’d even laid down the gauntlet, telling Boudreaux that if he ever tried to share her with the covetous bastard, so much as let him near her when she was naked, there would be no discussion—she would be gone.
She shuddered at the thought of the dirty little rat stalking her, being privy to every intimate detail of her life, while she remained oblivious.
“I realize that not all the choices I’ve made will sit well with you, beignet. Nevertheless, I will not apologize for keeping you close to me by whatever means necessary.” Boudreaux inclined his head. “If there is a price to pay, I will pay it if it means we reunite with a clean slate.”
Oh, he was going to pay through the goddamn nose for every trick, every sneaky and underhanded tactic he’d used over the years to not only stalk her, but gain access to her in a private, exclusive club.
A slow, sinister smile curved her lips. The security team wasnotgoing to be impressed by the fact he’d used a false name to thwart their system—especially when they ran deep, thorough background checks on any potential member. If Boudreaux’s fake name passed all the tests, it meant he’d gone the extra mile to create an identity so intricate, Derek Close might as well exist.
With any luck, Grit would revoke the membership, forcefully remove Boudreaux from the premises, and save her from any further interaction with him. Once he was gone, she could quietly load her things into her car and leave, driving as fast and as far away as she could while Frank was conveniently elsewhere.
Yes, that would work quite well in her favor.
Casting a dismissive glance at his cock, Violet flicked her fingers in its direction. “Put that away and get dressed. Making amends isn’t going to be as easy as you think, Boudreaux, but you can start by coming clean with the club about your identity.”
Unperturbed, he simply nodded. “Very well, if this is what you wish.”
She waited impatiently, tapping her foot as he unhurriedly began to dress. His slight grimace as he stuffed his cock back into the confines of his pants and eased the zipper up gave her an inordinate amount of pleasure—it served him right for thinking he could tempt her with the thing she’d once worshipped religiously.
For some inexplicable reason, she found herself looking away when he put on his shirt, covering up the violet tattoo. It shouldn’t hold any meaning to her, shouldn’t tangle her emotions this way; it was a pretty piece of artwork inked into his skin. Just because they had symbolic meaning to him didn’t mean she was obliged to feel the same.
The moment he was immaculately presented once more, Violet let her gaze rake up and down his body scathingly, wishing there was something she could criticize—a couple of buttons done up wrong, a twist in his belt, something,anything—but he gave her nothing.
Huffing out a breath, she whirled on her heels and stomped over to the door.
She might not be able to chastise him, but by God, she knew someone who would.
