While I’d changed clothing, and my hair was in a bun where I’d had it in a long braid before, there was no chance he hadn’t put all the pieces together. I was playing a fool’s game. Unless he was an arrogant bastard who had women falling all over him. I waited for him to threaten me, but he took a deep breath instead.
“Alright. I get it. Are you okay?” he asked again, only enunciating the syllables this time as if concerned I’d been injured. His gaze immediately fell to my cheek, his eyes narrowing. “Now, did I hurt you?”
“I’m fine.” I was far too cool with my answer. “You can let me go.”
“You’re sure?” Was he pushing me to see if I’d pretend this morning hadn’t occurred?
That’s exactly what I intended on doing.
Perhaps he was surprised by my accent, although after the number of people I’d met between the hotel staff and the dancers with the ballet theater, the city was filled with foreigners. “Positive. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going, but neither were you.” I turned my face away, although I was prepared with a lie should he ask what had happened to my cheek.
He shifted his hand, forcing my chin front and center, but I jerked my head away.
“Like I said. I. Am. Fine.”
Annoyed, he leveled me with his eyes in an entirely different way than he’d done that morning. At least the time allowed me to take a much better look at him. The handsome man was tall, at least six foot five and built differently than the men I’d spent my adult life around. Dancers were muscular yet slim, not an ounce of fat on them.
The stranger was bulky from lifting weights, his muscles so well developed his suit was a little too tight in the arms and chest. Where he’d appeared elegant the night before, his look nowreminded me of the way my brother had always looked just before handling a situation for my father.
“I’m glad to hear it. I certainly wouldn’t want someone as lovely as you are to be hurt by my careless behavior.” His study of me brought another wave of nerves. His words weren’t a threat by anyone’s standards, yet I continued shivering. I half expected several goons to appear from every side, waiting for his commands.
I’d long since stopped looking for boogeymen in the shadows. Now, I was doing it all over again, fearful of everything and everyone. Including my handsome lover.
I just needed to keep up the pretense.
He was a powerhouse dressed in a black suit, a slight surprise in the colorful environment and steam bath of a sunny day. With polished ebony shoes and a matching watch and band, the only light was in the color his shirt, the stark white a completely opposite of the scowl on his face.
Seeing his muscles straining at the material, his tailored shirt unable to hide his carved physique, I was momentarily thrown. Every inch of him was gorgeous, especially with his long, dark hair, the tips curling around his shoulder blades. Where he commanded attention without trying, I’d dressed like a college student having gone four nights without sleep prior to the final exam.
Instead of appearing unkempt, his look was sexy, as if the man had just finished indulging in explosive morning passion. When naughty images rushed into my mind, I was forced to look away to avoid him noticing an unwanted wave of embarrassment coloring my cheeks.
He took a deep breath, once again leveling me with his eyes. Yet as he inched closer, I gathered a sense our paths had crossed again for a reason.
That could have nothing to do with kismet.
“You look lost, which is entirely unacceptable. I certainly would never want an angel to be lost. Not one so precious.”
CHAPTER 9
Anna
Damn. Damn. Damn.
We were both dancing around what had occurred that morning, but there was no doubt he hadn’t forgotten I’d interrupted his act of business.
When he pulled his arms away, the sunlight flickered off his watch to the exposed cuff of his shirt. A dark stain furled along the edges, soaking into the material. Blood. Enough that it wasn’t about him cutting himself shaving, especially since he had a solid two-day stubble cresting along his square jaw.
He followed my line of sight, his face expressionless. He didn’t try to explain or deny.
Exhaling, I glanced from one side of the sidewalk to the other while clutching the phone like a lifeline. “I’m just trying to find a location somewhere around here.” He continued studying me with a smidgeon of amusement carved into his features. There was no way I was offering my name. Never to a stranger.
“Maybe I can help you. I live in New Orleans. It’s obvious you’re visiting.” He was doing his best to dig information on who I was. Oh, this wasn’t good for my continuing health at all. How long could I keep lying to him? The sexiness in his earlier voice had given way to full annoyance. I’d been told more than once I had that kind of effect on people.
Cold natured.
Or as some of the dancers had called me, the Ice Queen. Another act of protection I had no intention of losing for a man I didn’t know.
However, his voice was still far too alluring, kind but holding an edge that added to his sensual demeanor. Even the dark stubble covering a portion of his jaw alluded to a sense of darkness. Which was absolutely ridiculous. His personality was such that he had no intention of leaving.
