Sloane moves into the kitchen and opens the fridge. “You didn’t answer my earlier question, are you still staying in my spare room?” she asks him again.
His eyes come back to me, and I feel my cheeks heat. “Most nights,” he responds, and I know he’s implying that last night he was on the sofa because of me.
He could have slept in his own bed if he hadn’t kidnapped me and locked me in that room, I say as much with my eyes.
She wraps an arm around him and gives him a hug. “Can you do me a favor and look after Daisy? She’s new in town and doesn’t know anyone except me. Maybe order some dinner in tonight since you boys clearly don’t go grocery shopping now that I’m not around.”
“Yeah, I’ll take care of your little friend.” His lips twitch up at the sides, a look that does nothing to ease the churning in my stomach.
Why do I feel like I’m about to be in deep shit? I nibble my bottom lip, unable to forget the way he made me feel this morning with just a kiss. No one has ever lit me up like that before. It was a special moment that I know is about to be ruined.
She flicks his forehead. “Stop being weird, Cruz, you’re freaking the poor girl out.” She turns back to me, shaking her head. She mouths, “I’m sorry.”
I haven’t moved from my place in the doorway, still considering whether I should open her door back up and run like hell out of here. I need the job with her, and if I run from this place, she will know something is up and that I have already met her brothers. And I feel like that shit is only going to cause more problems for me.
“Come and see your room.” She motions for me to join her, and I know I have to because she’s now looking at me like I’m being weird.
Tentatively, I walk toward her, avoiding the kitchen where Cruz is still glaring in my direction. We take the hall, the same one I was in last night when Jagger dragged me to Cruz’s room. But this time we go right, and she opens a door into a light and breezy room, and that scent of vanilla hits me in the face. Why am I not surprised?
“I moved all my stuff out on the weekend, so it’s free for you to fill with your own.”
I dump my duffel on the bed and take a look around. “I only have this bag, so don’t need much space.” Aside from the king-sized bed draped in crisp, white linen, the imposing dressing table, and a couple of bedside tables, her room is empty. It’s perfect, though, exactly whatI need to get me out of trouble and a lot better than I ever expected I would get.
Her eyes run over me, her brow knitting together. “We will change that. I can take you shopping on the weekend.”
“Thanks, but I’m fine. I have everything I need right here.” I tap my bag, not needing any more of her charity. “I’m so grateful you have given me a job and a place to stay.”
She gives me a look but doesn’t push it. “Bathroom is through here.” She motions to the adjoining bathroom. It’s all white and fresh-looking, giving off fancy-hotel vibes.
“Thanks, Sloane, it’s great. How much do you want for rent? I think I can fix you up the end of the week when I start working.”
“How about you wait and see if you like working for me first. We can work out rent later?”
“No, I want to pay you properly.”
“Okay, I will work it out and let you know.” She looks back at Cruz, who has followed us and is now standing in the doorway still watching me. “Take care of her for me.” She pats him on the chest. “And I’ll see you tomorrow at work. I can stop and pick you up if you don’t have a ride.”
“Thanks, but that’s okay. I can take the bus.”
“You have my number if you change your mind,” she says, and I appreciate how she doesn’t push me. It’s like she gets that I need to do this on my own. Then she’s gone, leaving us alone together. I hear the front door open and close; it vibrates through the quiet apartment, a finality to it because now the two of us are locked in this place together.
Cruz keeps staring at me, the silence between us thick and deafening.
“What job are you doing for my sister?” he finally asks. His voice is low and holds an edge that I don’t like.
I unzip my bag, trying not to pay him too much attention. “Not sure that is any of your business,” I mutter.
My shoulders tense as he steps into the room, his raised brow a visible challenge to my words. A sudden thump echoes in my chest, and I carefully take a couple of steps backwards, not wanting to be trapped in such proximity with him.
“Funny, I think my sister just asked me to take care of you, so that makes everything about you my business.” He closes the gap between us, each step deliberate, backing me up until I feel the rough texture of the wall against my back.
“Yeah, well, Sloane was wrong. I don’t need you taking care of me in any way. I got myself a job and an apartment today.”
He towers over me, his hand resting on the wall, a looming shadow caging me in and sucking me into his overpowering vortex. “Did you, though? You got yourself in quite a pickle last night, didn’t you, little darlin'?” His dark eyes run over my face, and his intensity makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. “I don’t want to be the one who tells Jagger you didn’t make it onto that plane and back to your family this morning. What you saw last night was nothing. When Jagger is in a bad mood, he gets trigger-happy.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. I was a little worried about that, but now, fuck. I suck in a breath and raise my chin. “He… he can talk to Sloane about it, she’s the one who employed me.” I try to sound more confident than I feel. He wouldn’t kill his sister’s friend, would he?
“Sloane won’t be here when he gets home from his bar, though, will she. The only one who can protect you now is me, and I’m notso sure I want to after you lied to me and came right back to the town you promised me you would never set foot in again.”
