A beat of midnight silence passed between us. It was everything I could do to stop from staring.
“That’s probably a long list,” I smirked. “No?”
“Women who’ve touched my balls?”
“I meant kneed you there.”
He shrugged. “It’s not short.”
I held the water against my forehead for a moment, letting it cool me down. It was suddenly ten degrees hotter in here.
“You hunted down an innocent woman,” I argued.
“Theo hunted you down.”
“You tackled me.”
“That was Colson,” he countered.
“Still, I don’t trust you. You work for Donovan.”
“Worked,” he corrected me. “Past tense.”
Ripley drained his glass, without breaking eye contact. He set it down and began pouring another.
“So you expect me to believe that’s it, then? You just switched sides?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
“I expect you to believe I hate bullies. Men who hold leverage against people, like your ex-fiancé.”
He looked down, into his glass for a moment, giving my eyes free license to roam. They could’ve roamed those bulging arms, or those strapping shoulders that looked like they could carry the world. Instead, they focused on that roguishly handsome face. Ripley was boyish in those striking green eyes. But he was a thousand percent masculine, everywhere else.
“What kind of leverage does Donovan hold over you?”
He looked like he was about to say something, then stopped. Instead, he cleared his throat.
“No answer?” I pushed. “I guess you just went towork for him willingly, then?”
In the midnight silence, his tattooed body glistened. Ripley’s bronze skin still shone with the oils he’d been rubbing all over himself during our time here. I know, because I’d watched that show several times.
“You did it for the money, like everyone else,” I spat. “I’m sure your parents are very proud.”
At that he laughed, his face breaking into the most sardonic of smiles. It wasn’t a good laugh. It was an even worse smile.
“My parents…” he repeated. “Riiiiight.”
He drained his second whiskey, then pushed both the bottle and glass away. When he headed for the doorway, I stopped him with an outstretched arm.
“Look,” I fumbled. “I didn’t mean…”
His jaw tightened at my touch. The tension between us stretched taut, like a wire.
“This is going all wrong,” I sighed in frustration. “I didn’t come to fight with you.”
“Whatdidyou come here to do, then?”
