His hand slid to my cheek, palm pressing against it, warm and dry.
"And here." His thumb caressed my cheekbone. "When she was nervous, this would flush with the faintest pink. Just like now."
I wanted to deny it, but my face was indeed burning.
Damn my traitorous body—why did it have to be so honest?
"The hair's wrong too." Kayden's other hand threaded into myshort hair, fingers gently combing through. "Her hair was long, cascading to her waist, chestnut brown... but this color is right."
He wound a strand of hair around his fingertip, bringing it to his nose and inhaling.
I watched his eyes fall shut, his Adam's apple bob, his breathing grow ragged.
"Rose oil." He said hoarsely. "She always used rose oil. This scent... I could never forget it."
He opened his eyes, those silver irises now glowing with dangerous gold.
"So tell me, Miss Ross." He leaned down, forehead nearly touching mine. "Why do you have her face, her hair color, her scent? Why does my wolf go mad trying to break free when you stand before me? Why does touching you feel like... like being struck by lightning?"
Too close. Too close, too close, too close! I heard Diana screaming inside me.
"I don't know what you're talking about." I tried to cling to my last shred of rationality. "We don't know each other."
"Don't know each other?" Kayden's laugh came low and rough. His hand slid down from my hair, trailing along my neck, my collarbone, finally coming to rest above my wildly hammering heart.
"Your heart is racing." He murmured, palm feeling the frantic rise and fall of my chest. "Racing like it wants to burst free."
"That's because you..."
"Because of me?" He cut me off, each breath making me acutely aware of his desire, his barely restrained hunger. "Because I make you nervous? Because I make you... aroused?"
"No!" I clenched my teeth, furious at his deliberate misinterpretation, glaring daggers at him.
"Then what is it?" Kayden's hand had already slipped around my waist. Before I could summon my anger, I was melting into his embrace. "Tell me, Miss Ross. Why does your body respond to me? Why is your breathing so erratic? Why is your face so flushed? Why do your eyes keep avoiding mine?"
Each question was a knife, precisely stabbing through my disguise, leaving me utterly defenseless.
"I'm not..."
"You are." His tone brooked no argument. "You're avoiding me because you're afraid I'll see through you. You're resisting me because your body craves me. You're lying because..."
He paused, his eyes growing even more intense.
"Because you are her. You are Layla."
My heart plummeted. Instant alarm crashed over me like ice water, shocking me back from hormonal delirium. I finally remembered the secret I was carrying.
"Mr. Blackwood." My voice went cold as well.
Even knowing my cheeks must still be flushed, I had to ruthlessly extinguish every hint of intimacy.
"You're being extremely rude. I don't know who you're searching for, but I'm certainly not her. Now, please let go, or I will call security."
"Security?" Kayden laughed low, the sound rumbling from deep in his chest, dark and seductive. "Then call them."
"Layla." He leaned closer, nose tip barely grazing mine, his eyes flashing with a hint of obsessive madness.
"Your little games are adorable, but there's no crowd to hide in here."
