Page 96 of I Am Sin

“Fuck.” I rub my forehead. “You’re right. It could’ve come from anywhere.”

“I can call my dad. He has investigators he uses. Maybe they could figure it out.”

I shake my head. “I’m sure I can’t afford that.”

She holds up a hand. “My dad has them on retainer. They probably wouldn’t mind doing it as a favor.”

“I’m not in any situation to ask anyone in your family for another favor,” I say. “I’m already living here.”

She frowns. “Dragon, what is this about? What did that person say to you?”

I close my eyes for a moment. When I look at Diana—at her beautiful caring eyes—I almost want to tell her everything. I could so easily vomit out the entire story. More than I’ve even told my therapist. More than I even told Jesse.

But can I trust Diana Steel?

Better yet—do Iwantto trust Diana Steel?

Because I don’t trust anyone. Besides Jesse. I’m not even sure I trust my therapist, though he hasn’t done me wrong yet.

“I just need to know where the call came from. If it’s legit or not.”

“Dragon, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.” She places a hand on my shoulder. “But if I call my father and have him get in touch with our investigators, you will have to tellthem.”

I ignore the jolt of electricity coursing through my body at her touch. “Why would they need to know what was said? Can’t they just figure out where the call came from?”

“It’s not that simple. They need all the information to do a thorough investigation. Whatever they said to you might be some clue as to where they are, what they want, why this even happened.”

“They didn’t say they wanted anything.”

“Fine.” She looks me dead in the eyes. “But if I call them, if I get our investigators to help you, you have to tell them everything. You get it?”

I heave in a deep breath. “Fine. I wouldn’t even ask except…”

“Except what?”

“Except…nothing.”

“This is important to you,” she says.

“You think?”

She frowns.

I run my hands through my hair, sighing. “I’m not trying to be rude, Diana. This… This…” No more words come.

She removes her hand from my shoulder and cups my cheek. Her touch is soothing. More soothing than it should be.

“Something is inside you,” she says. “I don’t think you’re as dark and sinister as you claim to be.”

I shake my head. “You don’t know me.”

“You’re right. I don’t. I know next to nothing about you.” She looks into my eyes, narrowing her own. “But I can see that this is important to you. I see it in those eyes of yours. I see emotion in their depths. Emotion I wasn’t sure you had until…”

“Until what? Tonight?”

She bites her lip. “Until this morning.”

This morning? Is she serious? What happened between us had no emotion whatsoever. I open my mouth to say so, but no words come out.

---