I glance around. “Out here?”
“Yes, Eleanor, out here so you can’t run away to your room.”
“I don’t run away,” I grumble.
This time his lips twitch. “We have something entirely different to finish once we get inside. Right now, I want to deal with any questions you have from our discussion with William and ensure I actually have access to this app.”
My body flushes, and my stomach flips. “But we won’t be in public putting on a show,” I whisper.
He tilts his head, and his hand slides along my chin, trailing a blazing path along my jaw before tangling in my hair. He fists it, the sting zapping down my spine and setting the already burning embers of desire aflame. “The way you felt in my arms is not acting, Eleanor. Your pliant body, the heat gathering between your legs, the small gasps and whimpers you made as I kissed your neck and jaw. The restless way you squirmed against me as you begged for my lips against yours. That was not acting, trouble. That was as real as it gets.”
He sees so much. “I?—”
He shakes his head and pushes his finger against my lips. “Before you rush to deny it, let’s deal with business first. Thenyou can strip out of your dry panties once we get inside and place them in my hand as proof you are unaffected.”
I scowl. I know I can’t do that, and so does he. “You have an odd obsession with my underwear.”
A slow smile creeps across his face. “That’s easily solved.”
I know I am going to kick myself for asking but... “How?”
“Stop wearing them.”
Called it.
He releases my hair and slides his phone from his pocket, unlocking it with his facial ID before handing it to me. I locate the app buried in a games folder. I know he doesn’t play them, so it was easy to hide it there. I tap it open and spin the phone back around. “It needs your face again. If anyone else tries to open it, the app automatically locks until I release it.”
“Makes sense.”
A lot of what I do makes sense. Unless it involves him.
The app opens to a simple map with a slider button for Ghost at the bottom. “It’s currently set to off, which is how it should stay in case your phone is somehow hacked. I wouldn’t want them accidentally having live access to my whereabouts.”
“Can I test it?”
“Sure.”
He flicks the button on, and the circle in the center whirls as it sends a signal to the tiny tracking device in my arm. Twenty seconds later, the map starts moving and pings as it zeros in on me. “Impressive.”
Not really. It’s no more impressive than Find My Phone, but it’s in a human rather than a piece of tech. “Now turn it off.” He does and pockets his phone.
“Do you have any questions about the meeting with William?”
“Carlson is C,” I check, even though I know.
“He is.”
“And William, Cheryl, and Carlson know who I am and who is after me.”
“Correct.”
“Do you trust them?”
“With my life.”
Oh, to have that level of confidence that someone has your back. I am envious. “Okay. Why does Cheryl want to spend time with me?” That is more terrifying than anything else discussed tonight. I couldn’t get a read on her.
He grabs my hand once more and tugs me toward the door. “Cheryl is the mama bear of the club. She wants to get to know you.”
