Page 73 of As the World Falls

I nod. “Understandable,” I lie because it’s not. I couldn’t lie to her anymore if I tried. She was too smart for it. I respected her too much not to give her the truth if she asked it of me. If she doesn’t ask, then I’ll obviously keep my mouth shut. That’s how I usually operate, but I would lay it all down for her if she did,even if she used it all against me, which is a very big possibility with her. I underestimated her and what she would do with the information she gained. She stole my ledger from her brother, for God’s sake. She was a minx, that one.

I couldn’t hate her for it, though. As much as I wish I could, it only made me want her more. I was sick for her and turned on by the way she kept catching me off guard and undermining me.

Tobias looks over at me, and I feel for him. He looked exhausted. Probably the most exhausted I’d ever seen him, and I’ve seen him in the throes of withdrawals.

“You can stay here if you’d like. Take any of the spare rooms.”

He nods, standing from the couch. “Thanks. I’m gonna go crash,” he says before climbing the stairs to bed.

I opened my phone and texted Marco, my security guard who previously worked at one of my stores but was promoted to personal security. I sent him Cecilia’s address and ordered him to watch out at her place tonight.

Twenty minutes later, he responds that he’s at his post, and I breathe a little easier, if only for the moment.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Cecilia

My life felt like one big catastrophic tornado. Things have quickly spun out of control, and I have no idea where to land. My feelings were confusing, and I didn’t know where to begin making sense of them.

I was feeling things for James, or rather, my body was feeling things for him. I didn’t know which, although I hoped for the latter because I could handle it if it were just my body. It was my heart getting involved that I wouldn’t be able to withstand.

I try to remind myself of all the bad things he’s done, but when I try to think about it, I haven’t truly witnessed anything horrible despite hearing of some of his questionable antics. Not seeing firsthand his criminal ways makes it a lot harder to remind myself that he’s not a good person.

His touch and sinful words were becoming dangerous in a way that slowly made me forget about how I came to know him and made me want to get to know him more instead. He says I’m an enigma, but he’s the real one here because I was slowly discovering that he was much more profound beneath his cold,heartless façade. He was slowly but surely chipping away at the carefully built wall I’d been trying to keep between us.

I’m on my way to work when, for the hundredth time today, I feel like someone is watching me. I glance over my shoulder again, as I have done all day, but I don’t see anyone.

Awareness prickles against my back the minute I turn forward again. I pick up my pace, rush up the stairs to my library, and close myself inside. I glance over to my desk and see Lance’s head pop up from where he’s standing behind it. His eyes find me, and he gives me a tight smile.

Things have been weird since I’ve been back home with Lance. It felt like we were at a crossroads with each other—one I didn’t want to cross, but he did. After our arcade date of sorts, it was clear he wanted it to be something more, and I quickly ended it with a hug, and my door shut with him on the other side of it. Then he saw James here yesterday, and he’s been a grouch ever since then.

I walk carefully to my desk and set my stuff on top of it. “Good morning,” he says, and I smile politely.

“Good morning.”

“So, we got a good response back about the book club. I emailed you a copy of all the sign-ups so far.”

“That’s fantastic,” I chime excitedly. “Hopefully, we can get it going soon.”

“I don’t see why not.”

I smile, liking the flow between us so far, but it’s as if he senses it and has to ruin it immediately. “So, what did you do last night? That guy didn’t come back around, did he?”

I look down at my desk, unpacking my work bag and setting my coffee cup and phone on top of it. “Uhm, no. It’s not like that with him.”

“Sure looked like it was.”

I shoot my head up, meeting his gaze. “Can we not discuss this?”

“It’s just…you’ve been acting so?—”

“Lance, if you say crazy or weird, I swear I might hurt you.”

He raises his hands in innocence. “Okay, fine. I’m sorry. It’s just…things have felt off between us lately, and I want things to go back to normal.”

“Well, they are. I’m home now, aren’t I?”

“Right, but now he’s poking around. What’s his interest in you anyways?”

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