Page 25 of Tainted Love

I jolt out of it as Cynthia’s harsh voice charges through my ear. “Sorry, Cynthia…”

She glares at me with her arms crossed. “Are we somewhere else today?” she asks, her wrinkled mouth pursed in annoyance.

I shake my head and swallow the desire down my throat. “No, ma’am.”

“Well, once you’re done doing whatever the hell it is you’re doing, can you please meet the rest of us in the auditorium? We’re waiting on you.”

I glance around, suddenly realizing that I’m the only one left in the room.

“Oh. Sorry.”

She rolls her eyes before turning around and exiting the room without me.

I raise my other leg forward and lean into my stretch, this time trying not to sink too far into my fantasy.

Dante Hart.

Scumbag.

Scumbag with a huge cock but still a scumbag.

I drop my leg and spin around to catch up with the others.

“Oh!” I gasp and freeze in place.

Dante’s lips slide into a devious smile in the shadowed corridor. “Put your leg back up like that…” he says, his eyes trailing my tights all the way down to my toes. “It’s nice.”

“How the hell did you get in here?!”

He steps into the room with a bouquet of roses clenched in one hand and shrugs his thick shoulders, hidden beneath a long, black coat.

“I own the building,” he says.

“My father owns this building.”

“And I own your father. Let’s not argue semantics.”

I sigh with annoyance. “What do you want?”

He stops in front of me and holds up the flowers. “Courtesy of Mr. Antony Zappia himself.”

I stare at them with an upturned nose, refusing to take them. “Excuse me,” I mutter, passing wide around him to avoid touching him.

“You’re right—” He steps into my path and tosses the roses to the floor. “He’s a dick.”

“Well, he’s got good company, then.”

He purses his lips. “I assume that comment was directed at me?”

“You assume correctly.”

“Whatever did I do to deserve such unkind words, Lucy?”

“Ms. Vaughn.”

He chuckles. “Oh, we’re back to that again, are we?”

“Yep.” I try to pass him again, but he takes a wide stride to stop me. “I have a rehearsal. They’re waiting on me.”

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