Page 36 of Hate Notes

"To my bed?" she asked with a suggestive wiggle of her brows. "You going to help me get undressed, Mr. Foster? Because I wore this little pink thing underneath that would probably give you a heart attack."

I couldn't help smiling a little. She would kill me if she remembered any of this. "No," I said carefully. "I have no plans to undress you."

"Your loss."

"Is this your building?"

"Yessir," she slurred. “Yes, Daddy,” she added with a giggle. Ember fumbled around her purse for several seconds, then made a pouty face and held it up to me, admitting defeat.

I met her eyes, then reached inside her mess of a purse and dug until I found a keycard. It let us through the front door. "Which floor?"

"Three... I think. Unless they moved it again."

We took the elevator and emerged into a dingy hallway where people had set out black trash bags beside their doors. The multi-colored carpet was stained in several places, and there was a distinct smell of mildew in the air.

My chest tightened. She lives somewhere like this?

I paid her well enough to live somewhere better, didn't I? Unless she had debts I didn't know about... Was that part of her secret?

With some prodding, I eventually got her to tell me which room was hers, even though she kept using a British accent and claiming she wouldn’t tell me unless I resorted to “tickle torture,” whatever that was.

When we reached her door, it took her three attempts to get the key in the lock.

"Here," I said, taking the keys. As I opened the door, something ancient and possibly undead wound between my legs with a raspy meow.

"Catman!" Ember exclaimed. "Did you miss me? This is Orion. He's my boss. But don't worry, he only looks mean. He's actually kind of sweet sometimes."

I found myself kneeling to scratch behind the cat's remaining ear before I could stop myself. To my surprise, he pushed into my hand and purred.

"He likes you," Ember said, swaying slightly. "He never likes anyone. Smart cat."

"I have that effect on cats," I said, thinking of Goblin.

"Just cats?" she asked, and there was something in her voice that made me look up.

She was leaning against the doorframe, watching me with heavy-lidded eyes. Her cheeks were flushed from the wine, and her hair had come slightly loose from its clip. She looked... soft. Touchable. Dangerous.

I stood quickly. "You should get some sleep."

"Mmkay," she agreed easily, then promptly tried to walk into the wall beside her door.

With a sigh, I guided her inside. Her apartment was tiny but neat, with books everywhere and a collection of…rocks?There were various colored gemstones, crystals, and shiny stones on display by her window. I glanced at them a little too long, wondering why learning that Ember Hartwell liked to collect rocks seemed so interesting to me.

"Bed," I said firmly, steering her toward what I hoped was her bedroom.

"You're kind of sweet when you want to be," she mumbled as I helped her sit on the edge of her bed. "Like with your mom and sister. And Catman. Too bad you're so... complicated."

"I'm your boss," I reminded her, but my voice came out softer than intended.

"I know," she sighed, already laying down fully clothed. "That's part of what makes it complicated. And mean bosses can besohot, you know?"

“No,” I said. “I don’t.”

I pulled a throw blanket over her, trying not to notice how peaceful she looked or how my fingers itched to brush the hair from her face. I disappeared for a moment and rifled through her medicine cabinet until I found some aspirin. I filled a glass of water and set them both beside her on the bed.

"Get some rest," I said, noticing she had already kicked her feet out from under the blanket. With a reluctant sigh, I unstrapped her heels and set them beside her bed.

"Night, Orion," she murmured, already half asleep.

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