I blink, glancing past the name and into the office with sudden panic. When I find it empty, I exhale. Stupid. Of course he’s not here. It’s almost midnight.
I resume my journey down what feels like an endless hall. The offices get bigger and farther apart until I finally come to a corner office larger than any motel room or apartment I’ve ever lived in.
Vincenzo Diavolo, CEO.
With shaking hands, I pull the door open and step inside.
The security lights don’t extend this far, but I know better than to turn on any lights. I force myself to stand still and wait for my eyes to adjust before crossing to a large desk near the floor-length windows. I spot a pile of papers and a closed laptop but dismiss them both. Charlie said the files were locked away.
I try the desk drawers, but they’re all unlocked. Turning away, I study the credenza beneath the windows. I bend down and pull on the drawer.
Locked.
Bingo.
With quick movements, I turn back to the desk and search the drawers for a key.
A muffled sound stops me. Holding my breath, I listen, trying to identify what I heard. But there’s only silence.
Then a figure appears just outside the office, silhouetted in the uncertain light. For a moment, my heart stutters, but then his height and broad shoulders bring a sigh of relief.
Grey.
I come around the desk as he enters the darkened room. “I’m sorry. I know it was stupid, but Charlie said there’s a file on me, and I had to know?—”
He steps into the moonlight, and it’s not Grey at all.
“Dom,” I gasp.
Before I can even think about running, he grabs my wrist, squeezing to the point of pain. “Hello, beautiful. What a coincidence, finding you here.”
“Let me go,” I say, willing my voice not to give away my fear. But it’s impossible not to notice how alone we are.
“Not a fucking chance, little mouse.” Dom’s eyes gleam like two cruel stars in the darkness.
I struggle against his grip, but all it does is make him squeeze harder. The pain elicits a sharp cry from me, but he doesn’t yield.
I stop struggling to glare at him. “If Grey finds you here?—”
His eyes narrow. “That prick doesn’t scare me.”
My suspicion edges toward fear. “If you hurt him?—”
“Relax, princess. You’re the one I came to see.”
“How did you find me here?” I demand.
His smile is twisted as he snatches my phone out of my hand and slides the back cover off. He picks at it then holds something up between his finger and thumb. It looks like some kind of plastic tag.
Disbelief quickly turns to horror and my mouth falls open. “When did you put a tracker on me?”
“At the restaurant when you made your little promise to Franco.” He tosses the phone across the room, where it lands on the carpet, well out of reach.
My stomach churns. “You’ve been following me since that night?”
“You aren’t holding up your end of the bargain. We needed to have a private conversation.” He licks his lips, and fear grips me as I realize how trapped I really am right now.
When he backs me against the wall, I draw on every reserve of courage I can find to keep from losing my control. His free hand runs over my hip, and he leans down, breathing me in.