“Godda—!” She cut herself off mid-curse. “Not cool, Luc. Could you please give me a warning next time? A call or text? There is a psycho on the loose, you know.”
“My apologies, pet.”
He stroked his fingertips along her jaw. One might mistake her for the cat had she given in to the overwhelming urge to purr. His touch proved electrifying, and his voice magnetic. Nadia couldn’t seem to get enough of either, and for whatever unidentifiable reason, it annoyed her today.
The mystery surrounding him grew with each passing hour. His odd speech had provoked her to ask his origins when they’d first met, but he had laughed off her questions and then changed the subject. Other times, he would drop outrageous comments, painting himself as a wicked seducer.
If only.
Doubtless, her flushed skin and stuttering gave her away, but then she’d seen other women converse with him and realized the female population at large all responded to him in exactly the same manner. In that regard, she wasn’t special. She’d have gladly given it up to him, but whenever the opportunity arose, he quickly backpedaled, leaving her flustered and feeling as if she’d imagined his interest.
Nadia sighed and turned away.
“Are you going to the service today?” she asked over her shoulder as she headed into her closet to find a pair of heels.
“I didn’t know Dina and Raz as you did.”
Nadia glanced back. “You didn’t?”
“Not as you did.”
Why was he always so fucking coy?
His inability to give a straight answer bothered her. Perhaps if he could be forthcoming, she might lower her guard and fall for him completely. But for all she knew, he might keep human heads in his freezer. She’d never once visited his place.
And wasn’t it odd?
She poked her head out of the closet door. “How come you’ve never invited me into your home, but you’re always walking into mine unannounced?”
His full lips twisted into a smirk. “Do you want to be invited into my lair, little girl?”
Her breasts tightened with awareness, and Nadia nearly whimpered at the onslaught of heat at her core.
“Probably not,” she muttered, ducking back into the walk-in to hide her flushed response.
And where were her dang shoes?
“To your left, behind those incredibly sexy red heels,” he said.
She froze in the act of picking them up.
Had he just read her mind? The question hadn’t been asked aloud. With great care, she pulled the strappy heels from their hiding place and straightened.
“How did you know they were there? For that matter, how did you know which ones I was looking for?”
“The second evening I returned from my trip, you stumbled in from a girls’ night. If you remember—and I have my doubts you do—you thought my home was yours. You cursed the lock when you couldn’t open it. I, being the wonderful neighbor and friend that I am, helped you to bed. I placed your shoes in that exact location.”
“Oh.” Rattled by the whole incident, of which she had zero recall, she pushed past him to sit on the bed.
“Oh? That is all you have to say, Nadia?” He sat next to her and removed a shoe from her grasp. After he unbuckled it, he handed it back and repeated the action with the other one. “Did you think I was a cross-dresser who had raided your closet?” he teased.
“No!” Heat swept from her décolletage to her hairline. “I… I…”
Words escaped her. Here he was, the sexiest man she’d ever met in her lifetime, sitting on the edge of her bed and looking like he wanted to eat her up. All she could do was stammer like the worst lackwit. She could only top the moment by drooling on his pristine black slacks.
Distance!
She needed a great deal of distance between them, or she couldn’t be held responsible for her actions.
