I'm in a soft bed with a thin sheet pulled over me. I sit up, straining to see through the dark.
"You're awake," a husky voice murmurs.
My head snaps toward the sound. A silhouette of a man emerges from the dark.
My heart starts racing again, but in a way that feels delicious. It's a rush of adrenaline and something else that's still foreign to me.
The bedside lamp turns on. Dante Mancini is sitting in an armchair next to the bed, watching me with those predator eyes.
"How do you feel, Grace?" he asks.
"Fine," I say, even though my body feels like it's been through the wringer. "Where are we?"
"My home," he replies.
"And...what are you doing here?" I ask.
"Making sure you stay alive." His eyes flick down my body. His stare makes my nipples pebble.
I glance down at what I'm wearing. I'm no longer wearing the copper dress with the sheer skirt. Instead, I'm dressed in a comfortable long-sleeved cotton shirt with matching pink shorts. I don't remember changing into these, which only means that someone else changed my clothes for me.
I glance up at him again.
"Where's Sarah?" I ask.
"Somewhere safe," he says. "You can see her in the morning."
I glance around the spacious bedroom.
"I don't remember getting here," I say, taking in the high ceilings and French windows.
"You really don't remember any of it?" He watches me closely.
I shake my head slowly.
As I look at Dante, the familiar fire I felt before returns. It feels like my core is composed of neon-orange embers, and this man's stare only fans it, making everything inside me luminous.
"I see that the effects of the drug still haven't worn off," he says.
"Sorry?" I squeak.
"Your eyes," he says. "They give you away every time. And right now, they make you look like you need to be fucked hard."
I suck in a breath. Heat rushes to my cheeks. Nobody's ever spoken to me in this manner before.
"It's back, isn't it?" he murmurs, watching me closely.
I want to lie, but I know that he will see right through me.
"I got you something," he says, picking up a clear plastic bag and placing it on the bed.
I stare at it suspiciously.
"It will help with your...condition." He stands and walks toward one of the windows.
The sight of him makes my core clench with need.
He's tall and wickedly handsome. He’s also at least a decade older than me, but I don’t mind that at all.
