I pulled my apartment door shut and dropped the keys into my crossbody bag, my mood buoyed by the thought of taking off with Varesh for an hour.
With a face mask tucked under my chin, I turned and nearly collided with Dustin. Not a word, not a sound. Just materialising out of nowhere like a damn ghost.
With a sharp cry, I stumbled backward and knocked my elbow against the doorjamb. “God.Pleasedon’t sneak up on me like that.”
My heart clanged in my chest, and I listened out for sounds of others nearby. The two of us were alone in the hallway, with only the thud of Theo’s music next door for company.
“I can assure you I wasn’t sneaking.” Dustin’s gaze slithered down my body, and distaste passed over his features. “I came to let you know I received your most recent payment.”
“Oh, good.” With a grimace, I rubbed my elbow and played along. “Now you don’t need to chase Theo up anymore.”
“Hmm.” He took his time straightening the collar of his navy button-up shirt. “It seems I was mistaken about you, which is… disappointing,to say the least.”
My brows lifted. “How so?”
“I value traditional customs,” he said. “I was under the impression you did, too.”
His formal, old-worldy way of speaking might have been charming coming from anyone else, but he only used it to elevate himself above others. “How does this relate to Theo’s rent payment, and what gave you the impression we value the same customs?”
“Your lack of gentlemen callers. You’ve never had overnight visitors.” His mouth twisted. “Unlike your neighbour.”?
I frowned. “How do you know who’s been staying where?” Dustin lived on the ground floor. Before Ultimus restrictions kicked in, he only came upstairs on rare occasions for building-related matters.
“I see guests come and go through the foyer.”
He’d have to be watching the doors day and night. “And you’re saying Theo has gentlemen callers?”I asked with faux innocence.
“You’re misunderstanding me, Miss Wentworth, and I suspect you’re doing it facetiously.” He pressed his lips into a firm line and expelled a sharp breath. “I’m referring to females. He entertains females—the type with loose morals.”
Oh,females. Now I knew what had been keeping him busy during those long, solitary hours in his apartment: a steady diet of porn and podcasts.
Besides, no one had been entertaining non-residents for the better part of a year. Not even Theo. “Do you meanwomen?”?
His face turned deep crimson, and his hands flexed at his sides. I’d bet anything he wanted to wrap them around my neck. “It’s the same thing, is it not?”
He’d never been violent toward me or done anything I considered intimidating, but everyone had to start somewhere.
The bottle green walls on either side of me closed in, and the weight on my chest intensified. I curled my hand into a fist and estimated there were five steps between me and Theo’s door. “You’re being obtuse, Mr. Kerger, and I suspect you’re doing it deliberately.”
His body turned rigid as if about to lunge, his glare cutting straight through me. Whatever ideas he’d clung to about me had just been obliterated.
“Pardon me,” he said. “I didn’t take you for the type who likes to be used and abused like thosewomenTheodore entertains. No matter how poorly they treat you, you keep coming back for more, don’t you?” He stared down his nose, his eyes glittering from behind his glasses. “With the money you’ve spent on him, would it be safe to assume you’ve been opening your legs for him, too?”
A silent beat passed. Heat bubbled to the surface, but I kept my voice even. “We’re done here,” I said. “Don’t approach me. Don’t look at me—andneverspeak to me again.”
“I’ve hit a nerve.” The edge of his mouth curled, and he stared at me for too long. “The truth tends to have that effect.”
This man wouldn’t know the truth if it punched him in his smug face. “Nothing you said hit a nerve. I’m just appalled you think it’s acceptable to speak to me in that way.” My body coiledtight, but I schooled my expression, too stubborn to give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d unnerved me.
When I took a couple of sideways steps, he moved directly into my path, avoiding eye contact as if to make it seem unintentional.
How he’d ever got the impression we were alike floored me. “Move, Dustin,” I said, as the bass inside Theo’s apartment went quiet. “If you try to stop me from walking away, it won’t go well for you.”
Something cold and terrifying flitted through his eyes.
Knowing so little about him, I couldn’t predict his next move, but he’d chosen the wrong spot to corner me. We were too exposed in the corridor, and Varesh would come looking for me if I didn’t meet him downstairs.
Like the pretentious dick he was, Dustin took an exaggerated step back and swept his hand out, making me out to be an unreasonable, overreactingfemale.
