Page 72 of Pleasure Games

“Say you’ll talk to Jasmine. Say you can get the story straight and that you can get me out of here.”

François’s reply was a single raised brow followed by a sad shake of his head. He slid the pictures that had been sitting in the middle of the table toward him and went through them. Slowly.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Luca said to fill in the terrible silence.

François raised his gaze and then removed his glasses to clean them.

Before Luca had a chance to add anything, there was a knock on the door and François got up to open it. An officer stood outside and spoke quietly to the lawyer. Luca heard Jasmine’s name mentioned but that was the extent of it.

When the conversation ended and François returned to the table, Luca noticed the door had been left open.

“She’s refusing to press charges,” François said, as if this was a bad thing.

Luca stood. “Then it’s all over.”

“No. It’s not.” François sighed. “The photos were sent in by an anonymous tipster. There’s no stopping them being leaked to the press. Criminal investigation or not, the public has already condemned you.”

Fuck.

“I don’t even know what to say to you anymore. It’s over, Luca. You’ve ruined us.” He got up and walked to the door, then stopped to say, “Oh, and the American woman wants to talk to you, apparently. She’ll be here shortly.”

Luca stood, scrubbing a hand up and down his face. How could things have gone so awry? There was only one way. He’d been set up. Again. And there was only one man who would do it.

Marcel.

Luca kicked the wall in anger just as the door opened. Jasmine stood there accompanied by a female officer.

“I’d like to speak to him alone, please,” Jasmine said to the other woman.

“I don’t think—”

“Please.”

“Okay, but I’ll be right outside if you need me.” It was clear by the woman’s tone that she didn’t like the idea of Jasmine being in a room alone with him. Based on the fucking photos, he couldn’t blame her.

“Jasmine,” Luca began. “Thank you for—”

She stopped him with a fierce look before he could say another thing.

“Why did you lie?”

“About what?”

She threw her head back and laughed. There was not one whit of humor in it. “Let’s see, about your name. About who you really are. About this...” she shoved her hand into her pocket and pulled out her ring.

Fuck.

“Jasmine, let me explain. Please.”

“You had plenty of time to explain.” She paced the room. “Days to explain.” She stopped. “I asked you point-blank this morning about my ring and you lied to my face.” She came to stand right in front of him. “Why?” She narrowed her gaze. “Did you rob the store and knock me out and then try to hide that fact by whisking me away?”

“No. God, no. That’s not what happened.”

“Then for the final time, tell me the truth about what happened. You’ve got two minutes or I press charges for theft.” She tapped her toe, a permanent scowl on her face.

Luca began slowly, explaining how he’d stopped the robbery that day. How she’d chased him out of the store and he didn’t know why. How she’d collapsed. How he’d found the ring later and had planned to return it. How he’d been lying low because of previous scandals he’d been involved in and that he was in danger of losing his family fortune. There was so much that it all became tangled together in his explanation.

And it all sounded terribly lame.

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