I scooped her into my arms, cradling her close. She was so damn pale but lucky to be alive. I’d need to explain to her in detail that fighting a gunman wasn’t the way to handle the confrontation. Yet doing so fit her personality.
Enzo was back within seconds. “There’s very little blood in the back. But I heard two vehicles.”
Hissing, I headed to the door, flicking off the main light. He trailed behind me, opening the door and moving out first, ready to fire if we were disturbed.
“Never second guess my decisions again, Enzo. Do you understand?”
“Yes, boss. Never again.” He threw open the passenger seat of the SUV before locking the main door.
I climbed in beside her while Enzo jumped into the front seat, immediately driving away. Once he had, I turned my full attention to her, hissing every time lights flashed through the back window.
Even in the darkness, she appeared so frail. Vulnerable. Much more so than she’d been before. As I stroked the side of her face, she didn’t move, only the slight movement of her eyes under her shimmering soft lids providing indication she was alive. Goddamn, she was even more beautiful than I’d remembered.
Yet having her in my arms like this was an affirmation of why she should stay away from me.
Unable to help myself, I leaned over, the ache I felt as intense as the anger. My attraction was completely off the charts, my whisper husky and filled with the kind of thirst that would need to be quenched.
“I hope you are who you say you are, Josette. But I promise you no one will dare hurt you again. You’re safe now. Safe with me.”
If she was anything other than an accidental recipient of backlash from my line of work, my desire for her could mean nothing. I’d need to teach a lesson she wouldn’t soon forget.
If there was a single important lesson my father had taught me, and there were several, it was that everyone had two sides. Often from walking the fine line between virtuosity and evil. Or by simply hiding from the truth. Whatever the truth was behind herdarted glances and the fear I’d seen in her eyes I would discover. My seductive liar. Or as my grandmother used to call me as a small boy.
Petit menteur.
Little liar.
No one dared to enter the world of the Prince Empire without consequences, including the stunning woman who’d been in my arms. Her life was about to change.
Now she belonged to me.
My captive audience.
My possession.
CHAPTER 11
“That old black magic has me in its spell. That old black magic that you weave so well.”
—Johnny Mercer
Josette
The strange, haunted voice whispered over me brought me awake. As soon as I opened my eyes, fear swept through me, the feeling ripping at every muscle. A single moan slipped past my lips. The terror was suffocating as images rushed into the forefront of my mind.
“You’re safe now. Safe with me.”
His voice, dark and husky, seemed as if he was standing next to me. Very slowly, I turned my head, trying to weed through the horrible haze so I could understand what I was seeing.
A room and one I didn’t recognize.
Had I been dreaming? Had I overheard something?
Suddenly, it dawned on me that Sinclair had issued the words. His deep voice and the intense concern had wrapped around me like a soft blanket. So soothing. So defining.
So terrifying.
Images of the handsome, debonair man filtered past the heavy anxiety. He’d come into my coffee shop and I’d tried to ignore him. I’d wanted to, even turning away, but the draw to him had been even stronger than before. A gnawing hunger had overplayed the fury I’d felt. I’d spent the day convincing myself he’d somehow lied to me, pretending to be something he wasn’t.
