“For always being there. For putting up with my moods and making me laugh. For being my best friend.”
“Man, are you in a mushy mood tonight,” he grumbled. “I only called to say good night.”
Hailey laughed. “My romantic hero. You always run away when I get emotional.”
“Yeah, yeah. How are the overnight accommodations?”
“Fancy. He blocked a whole bunch of inns on the island for his guests. I’m staying at this little bed and breakfast with a huge four poster bed. I thought I’d need a ladder to climb up.”
“Just don’t break a leg getting down.” He paused. “Hailey, did anything else happen between you two tonight?”
An array of erotic images flashed before her; images of the Phantom thrusting inside her, his tongue deep inside her mouth; his arms pinning her against the bed. She shuddered with the memory and opened her mouth to tell her friend everything.
Then realized she couldn’t.
Theodore would never understand the dark, secret part of her who longed to be a sexual being. He supported her and kept her safe. He was sweet and kind and safe. After his heart had been broken by his lover, he had closed a part off. Hailey knew they had connected so well because she had done the same thing. Now, she wanted to be free.
But he was still trapped.
No, Theodore was better off not knowing the truth. Hailey took a deep breath and lied. “Nothing else happened.”
Silence hummed over the line. When Theodore spoke his voice was tight with emotion. “I’m sorry I couldn’t make you feel like that. Good night, Hailey.”
“Good night.”
She clicked off and stared out into the darkness. A strange ache lay heavily around her heart and she wasn’t sure why. Something in her friend’s voice made her miss him. Almost as if he was as lonely in the darkness as she, and wanted to feel a connection. His last words were so odd. How could he possibly know how she felt about Ciro Demitris?
Thoughts of Theodore whirled with images of her Phantom, until she closed her eyes to avoid the tangle of feelings and fell into a deep sleep.
Theodore stared at the phone and fell back on the pillows. Hands clasped behind his head, he thought of her voice and what she had shared with him tonight.
For the first time, there was no barrier between them. Clothes had fallen away, skin touched against skin, but even more powerful was her gift of self. He understood now all the moments she distanced herself from him, afraid of the past, afraid of wanting something that could burn out of control. He needed to use these last nights to imprint himself into her so deeply she could never run away again.
The masquerade had been successful so far. He made sure he stayed behind as the guests left, remaining in the same bedroom where he’d first spotted Hailey. He hired his own private boat to pick him up at the mansion a half hour past dawn, so she’d never suspect the ruse. Every last detail had been arranged, yet he still feared the final unmasking. She was falling in love with him, yet she believed he was Ciro Demitris. She was ripening before his eyes, and he was the one who had set her free. But was Hailey ready to accept the terms of a real relationship, or would she now want to be free? Would she crave to experience everything she had missed out on? Would she turn away from him to embark on affairs?
He'd set up his plan in order to claim his lady. Yet, he now realized by setting her free, he may lose her forever.
Theodore turned out the light and gazed into the dark of the room. The question burned in his mind for a long while before sleep finally claimed him.
CHAPTER SIX
Theo watched her walk in the room, her step halfway hesitant as she closed the door behind her. Tonight, she wore an ebony dress that tied around the neck in a halter style, then plunged low in the front and left her back bare. Her mask was held together by vibrant feathers, making her blue eyes even more mysterious.
As she stopped before him, he didn’t speak. Just looked at her. The sheer beauty of her presence made his heart pound faster. He dreamed of her last night. Their conversation haunted him, along with his troubled thoughts, and his weakness for her suddenly made him angry.
All those evenings they spent together, talking long after the sun set about their lives. She called him her friend, but never shared her past. She believed him to be safe, but when he made the slightest move to deepen the relationship, she backed away. Yet here she was before him, thinking he was a stranger. With Ciro Demitris she revealed everything – underneath her clothes and into her soul in a way she never let him in.
Theo had slipped into the role of the tycoon with an ease that surprised him. When he donned the cloak and mask, he decided to let his own secret fantasies take hold. He became dominant and demanding with his pleasure. He knew Hailey wanted intrigue and fantasy, and he’d given both to her. What he didn’t realize was the emotions he used to be the Phantom were quite real. He was lonely and isolated. He longed for sexual freedom and a woman to fly in his arms. Everything he spoke to her as Demitris was the truth.
And that scared the hell out of him.
Suddenly, Theo didn’t want to play the game anymore. He wanted to tell her the truth, and watch her shock when he revealed himself. He wanted to hear his own name echo through the air instead of the false Phantom.
Jealousy bit through him. His eyes narrowed with an anger he no longer wanted to hide. He spoke like he imagined Ciro would, formally dismissing her. “I’m not in the mood for elaborate games tonight. You’ve begun to bore me. I won’t be requiring your service.”
Hailey flinched. Something had changed. A wall shimmered around him that froze her out. She stared and searched for a sign of his true feelings, but he only walked to the dresser to take a cigarette and light it.
Hailey tightened her arms around her breasts in a protective gesture. Was this it? The end of a charade she’d believed was becoming real?
