“You think I live in this big-ass house alone?”
“I wondered.”
He smiles softly. “Come on.”
Inside, he takes my wrist and leads me down a dim hallway into a kitchen. All the lights are turned off, so I can’t see much as he guides me to a stairwell. It’s dark here too, like it’s mostly unused, and I can hear muffled voices from behind us.
When we exit, we’re in a foyer surrounded by many closed doors. “Mine is down here.”
I follow him, glancing around a bit. It’s too dark for me to see many details, but I can tell the finishes are high end. Specter opens his bedroom door and gestures for me to enter.
I do, surprised by the spacious room on the other side. To my right is an area that looks like a makeshift kitchenette, and next to it, a small round table with two chairs. Deeper in the room is a small love seat at the end of an enormous bed. On the wall in front of it is a massive fireplace with a TV mounted above it. Other than that, it’s decorated minimally but it’s comfortable.
I toe my shoes off and set my bag on the floor next to them, suddenly awkward. I’m in Specter’s bedroom, and I have no idea what the fuck I’m doing.
“Do you have an idea of who it is?” Specter asks, getting right to business.
I shake my head. “No. He was wearing a mask.”
“Driving?”
“A white van. Pretty nondescript.”
“Fuck.” He rubs his forehead. “I’ll find him.” Specter closes the distance between us until I have to tilt my head back to maintain eye contact. “I’ll find him, then I’ll tear his guts out and use them to hang him.”
“That’s oddly specific.”
He lifts my chin, tilting my face to see the bruise. “You need some ice.” Using his thumb, he brushes something off my other cheek. “I’m gonna fucking kill this bastard and enjoy every second of it.”
“You mean that literally, don’t you?”
He nods, his eyes darkening. “I mean everything I say literally.”
“Good to know.”
“You’re staying here until it’s dealt with. Do you need things from your place?”
“Now, wait a minute. I need to think about?—”
“There’s nothing to think about, gorgeous. If you think I’m letting you out of my sight, you’re very wrong.”
My independent streak rears up, ready to defend my autonomy, but it dies down quick enough. I don’t want to go back to my place alone. That’s why I’m here, right? For protection. My stalker got too close and the next time he might not be so easy to get away from.
“Fine, but you don’t own me, and I won’t sleep with you just to get your protection.”
“Good. You will sleep with me eventually, but only because you want to.”
“We’ll see about that.” His arrogance is disarming. He’s hot, and he knows it, but so am I. “Where will I sleep?”
“In my bed. It’s big enough.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
“You tell me, beautiful. You came here.”
“I meant in bed.”
“Because I’m not a creep. I’m not a rapist either.” His eyes heat. “I want you, Cashmere, bad. But I want you to want me back. I want you to see how good I could be for you. I want your obsession, like you have mine.”
