Page 224 of Maddening Fixation

I landed on top of him, my breath catching as I realized what I had done.

For one second, I saw something almost unfamiliar in his eyes.

Not anger. Not coldness.

Surprise.

But the moment disappeared.

Before I could move, Romeo reacted.

His body shifted with terrifying speed.

One second I was above him.

The next, my back was pressed into the earth, his weight holding me down.

His hands trapped mine against the ground.

His breathing was heavier than I had ever heard it before.

Not calm. Not controlled.

Something about that unsettled me more than his anger would have.

“I went to Poland,” he said.

His voice was rough. “I went there looking for your father.”

My fury faltered slightly.

Poland?

“Your father learned I was coming for him, so he laid a trap.” His eyes stayed locked on mine. “And he laid it well. I had barely stepped into his territory before the local police were waiting for me. My arrival was supposed to be invisible. No one was meant to know I was there.”

A muscle moved in his jaw.

“Except someone did.”

The anger in his voice wasn’t directed at me.

It was directed somewhere else.

“I was arrested and detained. I couldn’t reach my men. Not Keegan. No one.”

For the first time, my anger faltered. “You were in prison this entire time?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t blink.

“I flew to Poland the same day I ordered Keegan to bring you here. You were never supposed to be locked up for four months. It was meant to be temporary. I expected to be back the next day.”

His expression hardened.

“Keegan refused to release you because he had no direct command from me.”

I stared at him. “He could have used his own judgment.”