“Lock the door and stay put,” I tell Sloan as soon as she steps into her dorm room. “Those guys are known to prowl after a party.”
“We will,” Sheila says since Sloan is unusually quiet.
My eyes drift to Sloan’s, and I see the silent invitation in her gaze. My body physically aches with the need to accept it, but I know I can’t. So, I just nod before turning to walk away.
I spend the next week following Sloan around from the shadows. I stay hidden because I know I won’t be able to deny myself again if she looks at me with anything other than the hate I’ve carefully crafted.
The day she gets in her car to drive back to Thorngrove, I promise myself to find a way to make her mine eventually. Little do I know that it’ll take me five years to make good on that promise.
CHAPTER FIVE
Sloan
Ihate to admit that Dean is right. Iwouldhave invited him into my dorm room the last time I saw him. That was before I woke up and remembered all the hell he’d put me through. Saving Sheila and me from a couple of would-be attackers didn’t erase all the awful things he’d said and done.
“Well, I guess you missed your chance,” I say as I square my shoulders. “So, as I said earlier, you can go jump off a cliff.”
I see disappointment flash in his eyes, but it’s gone so fast, I’m not sure I didn’t imagine it. His face takes on a mask of cold determination as he takes a step forward, forcing me to step back until he’s standing in my parents’ foyer. He kicks the door closed behind him before setting the flowers he’s been holding on the entryway table.
I want to say that I’m scared of him being inside my home. I want to say that his hands being free terrifies me even more. But I’mnotafraid of him. Not anymore.
“I’ll call the cops,” I threaten, scowling when he just laughs.
“You can use my phone.” He pulls said phone out and offers it to me with a smirk. “You can call your sister. Make sure you tell her that her sergeant is your trespasser.”
“You work with my sister?” I ask in shock, trying to hide the hurt that stabs me at the news.
Why didn’t Becky tell me that she was working with my nemesis? When did he transfer to Thorngrove? I received that letter over a month ago. Has she known he was here the entire time? How could she not warn me that he was in town?
“I guess you’re not the only sister keeping secrets, huh?” he asks, clearly reading my confusion. “You had a stalker for over a month and never said a word.”
“Because there was no reason to worry her…” My words are cut off when he lets out a sarcastic laugh.
“Like I said the last night you saw me…” He takes a menacing step toward me. “You wouldn’t know real danger if it knocked you over your gorgeous little head.”
I take a step back, hitting the wall behind me. I expect him to close the distance and torment me further as he would have in college, but he doesn’t. I can’t decide if I’m relieved or disappointed as I watch his fingers twitch before he shoves his hands into his pockets with a sigh, bringing my gaze back to his face.
“Why are you here, Dick?” I use the nickname purposely, to remind him—and myself—that I don’t want him here.
“I’m here to offer you a job.” When I scoff, he explains, “I’ve been appointed the Southside Division’s Head of Undercover Operations. I’m opening a gentleman’s club as a base for mycover. I need eyes and ears on the floor where guys let their guard down. I need an undercover dancer.”
This time it’s me who laughs. “You came to offer me…” I laugh again. “A job…” I take a breath, stop laughing, and glare at him. “As astripper?!” I shout.
“Pretty much.” He shrugs before pulling his hands up in defense when I take a step toward him. “But it’s more than just a dancing job. I need someone on the inside ofbothsides of the law, and I need that to be someone I trust.” His last words stop the rant I was preparing in my head.
I won’t pretend to be shocked that he trusts me, because on some instinctual level, I trust him too. It’s why I never reported his harassment in college. I just gave it back to him. Because even though I would never admit it out loud, there was always an underlying attraction to our banter. All it would have taken for me to fall for him would have been for him to admit that he felt it too. But instead, he acted like a fourth-grade boy with his first crush.
Now, he’s here…inmytown…in myhome…offering me what I hate to admit is a fantastic opportunity. I can finally explore the side of dance I’ve always been drawn to. I was just never willing to work in the kind of place where I could experience it in real life unless I was working for someone I knew I could trust.
I’m not naïve enough to think that his timing is coincidental. Whether he heard it from my sister or some other source, he knew that today was the right day to approach me with his ridiculous offer. But regardless of how he got the information, he was right.
I glance at the flowers he set on the table. Dahlias have always been my favorite flowers. Despite being a dancer, I’ve always had a gothic heart. I love a good thrill. I’m not blind to danger like Dean’s accused me of twice now; I’m attracted to it. It’s probably why I’ve always been so attracted tohim. AndI won’t bother trying to convince myself otherwise. It’ll be my little secret.
“I still hate you,” I tell him as I cross my arms in front of me to hide the way my hands tremble.
“Careful, Sly.” He leans forward until I can feel his breath on my face. “There’s a thin line between love and hate.”
“Like the line between being an undercover cop and a thug?” I ask without stepping back.
