Page 109 of Sinister Intentions

“What a damn shame she’s here,” he murmured, then reached out, dragged his finger along my neck, parted the robe a little, and moved across my cleavage.

His touch was so soft and erotic at the same time, it made me break out in whole-body goosebumps.

Then he looked back up into my eyes and grinned while licking his lips like the cardboard villain in a bad movie.

And I snorted with laughter. “You look like a horny slimebag.”

He waggled his eyebrows. “If that’s a fantasy of yours.” He took a step closer until his chest pushed against mine. He leaned down. “I can pretend to be whatever you want. It’s been a while since I enjoyed a good role-play.”

Then he stuck his tongue into the shell of my ear and made me jump back in surprise. I didn’t realize his real plan because my robe opened the moment I moved back, and his hungry eyes swept down my body before he locked his gaze onto mine. “Sexy.”

“Stop badgering her,” Isabella shouted from behind his back.

He waggled his eyebrows again and winked at me, and my heart skipped a beat.

Vince Salvini, all dark and intense, was dangerous. But Vince Salvini, flirty and sexually suggestive. That was a surefire way to die of a heat-induced heart attack.

He unscrewed a bottle of water he’d been holding and handed it to me. “You need to hydrate,” he said, winked again, kissed my forehead, and passed me by without another look but not without his shoulder touching mine.

Holy shit.

“What about me?” Isabella shouted.

I turned around and watched Vince’s retreating back—and ass—and the bird he flipped his sister over his shoulder.

I smiled. It was nice to see that side of him. I’d witnessed it with his brothers, but apparently, the relationship with his sisters was similar easy and normal.

I took a sip, then slipped out of the robe and eased into the hot, bubbling water, wincing as my sore muscles protested—a reminder of last night, or maybe this morning.

The jacuzzi’s jets hummed, creating a soothing white noise that enveloped and calmed me. I sank deeper, letting the warmth seep into my bones.

Isabella settled across from me, her dark eyes scrutinizing. “Are you okay? And…do you really intend to marry Vince?”

I opened my mouth to deny it outright but hesitated. The word ‘no’ felt heavy on my tongue. “I…no,” I said, surprising myself with how wrong it felt to just outright rule it out. But was I honestly considering it?

My mind flashed to Vince’s intense gaze, his protective embrace, the way he’d held me last night, the way he stared at me, acutely aware of my reaction when he entered me.

“This is just the start. It will only get better.”

A warmth that had nothing to do with the temperature of the water spread through my chest.

Isabella nodded, a knowing look in her eyes. “I get it. Vince has the personality of a bulldozer. You’ll never win if you go against him head-on. But that’s not the most pressing issue anyway.”

She leaned closer, lowering her voice despite the noise covering us. “I owe you an apology. The list is out, and your name is on it. They have everything—names, addresses, all of it.”

I stared at Iset, could see the sympathy in her eyes. I swayed, suddenly dizzy, and grabbed the edge to steady myself.

Iset said something though I couldn’t understand a single word. Everything was suddenly drowned out by a shrill ringing in my ears, mixed with the pounding of my heart against my ribs like it wanted to escape.

I went completely still, then glanced down at the bubbles as tears welled up in my eyes.

Shit.

Everything I’d feared was coming true.

I focused on my breathing and the bubbles percolating the surface and bursting into microscopic, tiny sprays of water.

Iset grabbed my forearm and squeezed until I looked back up at her.

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