Page 70 of Lord of Debauchery

Would my father be so devious as to fake what he’d found? Fucking bullshit. But there was one possible way of double checking. I swapped the jump drives again, pulling up the much more extensive list provided by the Brotherhood. It took a little longer to search given the volume of names, but when the search grid locked onto the same name, a group considered in the second tier, I leaned back in my chair.

What. The. Fuck?

“Am I interrupting?”

Her voice, her soft and seductive voice was suddenly echoing in my ears. As occurred every time I was in the same room with Kenya, I was suddenly much more alive, my heart thudding. Today was no different and as I glanced toward the door, my breath was ripped entirely from my body given her extreme beauty. Unable to stop myself, I whistled in appreciation, immediately closing the laptop and sliding the evidence into my drawer.

“You’ll never be considered an interruption. You’re far too beautiful.”

She spun around in a full circle, allowing me to see every inch of the stunning dress she’d chosen from the small collection I’d had purchased for her.

The woman made my mouth water.

She also infuriated the hell out of me.

Now I had a choice to make, just like my father had mentioned.

One path was risky, dangerous to all I knew.

But the other would be heartbreaking.

“Are you ready to go?” she asked.

“I just need to make a very quick phone call. I’ll meet you out front.”

“You’re allowing me out of the house?” She batted her lovely eyelashes. “I’m in shock.”

“I assure you that if you tried to run, you wouldn’t get very far. I am a predator, you know.”

“Oh, I know. I know very well.”

She spun around again before walking out, even daring to blow me a kiss before disappearing from sight.

And for the first time in maybe forever, I felt like a shit because of what might need to be done.

CHAPTER 19

Kenya

No man should be allowed to look at a woman that way. I thought for certain he would combust, his nostrils flaring just like they’d done before, but I’d also sworn I’d seen steam coming from the top of his head.

I couldn’t lie that his reaction to seeing me in the hot little dress allowed me to tingle all over. Yet something nagged at me, as if the man was still questioning the loyalty he so coveted. There was almost a hint of hatred in his eyes.

As I headed out the front door, I considered going back and eavesdropping on his phone call. What if I was just being used? What if he was planning on killing me?

Right. Reading too many horror mysteries lately?

Why would he bother taking me out on a date when he could simply bury me in his backyard? I rolled my eyes as the warm sun hit my face. It felt like I hadn’t seen the sun in weeks, not just a couple of days. Just getting out of the house almost felt normal.

Almost.

But there was a sense of a ticking timebomb given the attacks. It remained hovering over the house like some black storm cloud. I could see soldiers walking the area and was reminded of all the horrific events all over again. While I wasn’t entirely certain what anyone would call what Beckham and I were sharing, it certainly wasn’t real. It wasn’t as if we were living together playing house.

My God. Maybe the hunger had gotten to me, stealing oxygen from my brain. This was barely a love affair, more like passion on steroids. Laughing to myself, I held the small purse against my chest, although it didn’t have any of my personal effects inside. Just a comb, lipstick, and a compact with translucent powder, all recently purchased. I was grateful for them, even if I certainly knew Beckham hadn’t picked them out himself.

As I headed toward the lovely front garden covered in winter flowers, I was able to admit to myself it felt natural around Beckham, even if I still didn’t know him very well. The shower and time spent together had been perfect. Maybe too much so.

If my psyche truly thought that way, then why was I suddenly feeling ill at ease? It wasn’t something I could answer right now. I heard his footsteps seconds later and another bolt shifted down my spine. This one was very heated, enflaming my core all over again. I sensed him moving right behind me, but he said nothing, the quiet becoming unnerving within a full minute of his silence.

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