Page 28 of Watch Me

“I did what needed to be done to lure out our blackmailer.”

Or did I merely do what I had to in order to achieve a stunning pair of orgasms? I barely resisted Alejandro’s offer of a third, which he’d promised to give me in his bed, just the two of us on soft satin sheets.

“And you did it very well, I hear.”

I roll my eyes and turn away so he can't see my cheeks turning pink.

But I’m not fast enough.

“You’re blushing. You?” Astonishment laces Kristoff’s voice. “I have never seen you do such a thing.”

It’s rare, and all because Alejandro blew me away, and I haven’t recovered yet. I’ve never craved sex or ached for anyman. Until him. Last night, before I lost myself in self-pleasure while thinking of Alejandro, I wondered exactly what he did to me and why I’m so fascinated by him.

How did he get under my skin so quickly?

Pretending to walk across the studio nonchalantly, I seek my bottle of water and drink deep, then turn back to Kristoff. “Apparently, our plan wasn’t good enough. We didn’t catch anyone in the act of filming us, as we hoped. No one has sent me another blackmail video or threatened me as a result of the whole thing.” I shrug. “I guess it was a waste of time.”

But it doesn’t feel like a waste, given what he did next…

After the scene ended, Alejandro pressed a button to drop a partition between us and the audience. I heard the watchers filing out, which filled me with a sense of both loss and relief. Then he turned me to face him and took me into his arms. For a simple hug. He didn't say a word, asked for nothing else for long moments. He just held me and stroked my hair. I haven't had that in a long time. Years. My father and brothers certainly never gave me much affection; it’s just not who they are. And I needed it more than I realized.

Folded against Alejandro’s chest, I clenched my eyes shut tightly, resisting an urge to crawl deeper into his embrace and cry for all the fear—and conversely, the bliss—that soaked my body. In the aftermath of our sex, my emotions tumbled, jumbled, and whirled all around. Up was down, backward was forward; nothing made sense except holding onto him.

Somehow, I managed to restrain my tears, tear myself from his arms, and reach for my clothes.

Within minutes, Del emerged into the room with the unhappy news that security already scoured the footage of the event and found no one in the audience with a camera of any kind.

After Del left, I lost it. Tears fell hard and fast. But silently. I hoped Alejandro never noticed.

Wishful thinking.

“Don’t cry,” he whispered as he swooped me up into his arms.

I had been too weak to fight Alejandro, especially when he felt so strong while he settled me against his solid body and in the shelter of his arms. As he kissed his way down my face, he was so tender, as if he knew exactly what I needed. He ripped right through my fragile barriers. I opened up to his whispered words and tender mouth…

Then he took my hand and led me out of the main house, down a pathway hidden by tropical plants and climbing ivy, softly lit by the full moon before pushing his way toward a luxurious cottage.

His private quarters.

Being alone with him when I was so emotionally raw…not smart. Downright scary, in fact. Even the idea made my heart skip and my palms go clammy.

Clutching my keys, I mumbled something about a fictitious early-morning practice and fled.

So, it’s done. Alejandro and I are over. Now, I need to get my mind off of the repeated messages he’s left since and focus on dancing. I have the biggest competition of my career to prepare for. He has a business to run. Why he continues to pursue me, I have no idea. We have nothing in common.

Except great sex.

“Earth to Shanna,” Kristoff jokes. “Are you with me?”

“Yes. Sorry. I have a headache.” That isn’t a lie actually…just not the whole truth.

“What should we do next about…the problem? Perhaps you should seek out a new partner.”

He looks so sad at the prospect. Something in my chest twinges, and I try to shove it aside, but that isn’t working.

“We don’t have time to talk about this now. You have to be at work in two hours, and I have to meet with the costumer shortly. Let’s focus on today.”

“Do you want to talk about what happened at Sneak Peek?”

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