Page 38 of Dirty Little Sins

Something I hadn't felt in a long time. Not since those warm summers in Italy with my grandmother. The one place as a young girl that felt like a haven from the rest of the world.

I took a deep breath and let Vincent's steady touch work through me. He'd hired this man to help us and I knew that if I didn't cooperate it wouldn't work. But did I want it to? I still had a strong urge to just let sleeping dogs lie.

"Besides the email from his account, it only makes sense if Dante was the one who blackmailed me. Why would anyone else care? I've only gotten close to a few people besides him and those I trust implicitly."

Houston nodded while his lips compressed. I had a feeling he was about to tell me why I was wrong.

"You'd be surprised. While these types of crimes are often committed by someone close to the victim, motivations can come from strange places and even stranger people. Celebrities are often just as exploited by strangers as they are people close to them. Social media these days has warped the views of the traditional fan. It's given opportunities and access to stalkers like never before. We really can't discount every possible scenario at this point. It's too soon."

"But the email came from Dante. He was angry about the things I said in court. He referenced our sex life. In hindsight I should have handled all of it differently."

Houston's hand tightened on my waist. "You'd better not be trying to lay the blame for any of this on yourself. That's absurd, Zia."

It was my fault. My mind screamed it at me every time I focused on it. I'd put myself in this position by getting involved with this man in the first place and I was doing it again.

"We don't have anyone to blame yet so let’s try not to go there just yet. This situation is best handled by sticking to the facts. I've got the emails you received and our tech team is working on tracing them now. Is there anything else that might help the investigation?"

My head was about to explode. "You have the emails? But I just showed them to Vincent less than an hour ago."

Houston nodded again. "That's about right. He forwarded them to me and my team jumped on them right away. I should hear an update from them before morning."

My head spun at the speed of which things were happening. Not to mention that throbbing behind my eyes was back. I needed to get back to the hotel and focus on my restaurant. I didn't want to think about this mess anymore.

"I can't do this. I need to get back to the hotel. I could use a few hours of rest before I have to get back to work and back on camera."

"You'll stay here tonight with me."

I bristled at his tone. The implication that there was no question as to whether I would stay or not both annoyed me and thrilled me. Torn between two desires, I was starting to get that crazy vibe again.

"I can—"

"It wasn't a question, Zia. You need rest and you'll get a hell of a lot more here than in that hotel. I have to be at the gym early too. This way we both get what we need in the most efficient way possible."

Ugh. I hated when people used reasonable sounding logic on me. I didn't want to be the one who sounded insane for fighting it. I rubbed at my eyes and the top of my head. By the time I waited for an Uber and then the drive back and the time it took to make my way back to my room...

"On that note, I'm going to see myself out. If you two come up with anything else I need to know, you've got my cell number."

"Will do." Vincent and Houston shook hands. "I know you've both got some big events coming up so I'd like to wrap this up before fight night and the restaurant opening."

I felt my head nod, but I was kind of operating on auto pilot at this point. Fatigue was setting in and I could barely keep my eyes open much longer. Luckily, the goodbye didn't last long and when I tuned back into the conversation Houston was already gone.

I twisted my body to look in the direction of the front door. "Where'd he—"

"He's gone. "C'mon, let’s get you in bed."

Before I could respond, Vincent swept me into his arms and headed to the opposite side of the house that I'd yet to see. Tired of everything, I pressed into his shoulder and slid my eyes closed. I was still curious about the rest of his home, but the need for sleep had won the battle before I could develop a thought.

Here in Vincent's arms I could focus solely on the man surrounding me. His scent, so strong and male, filled my senses. Through the soft fabric pressed against my cheek I could feel the flex of his chest muscles as he carried me. I already knew how incredibly strong he was, but it was a different story all together when that strength was focused solely on me.

Something warm and exciting bloomed in my core. What could I say? Vincent was potent when it came to my libido and I was pretty sure he knew it.

"Here you go, beautiful." One minute I was in his arms and the next I was not and my body wasn't happy about it. A whimper escaped my lips and I vaguely heard a husky chuckle as my shoes were removed.

"No clothes, beautiful. Not allowed in here. Ever."

I heard the decree, but I didn't even remember asking the question. His fingers were trailing their way up my legs and I may have opened my legs to welcome more of his touch. It was hard to tell as my mind had this floaty half asleep thing going on.

"Relax. I've got this for you." He pressed a kiss to the inside of my knee. "Tomorrow you can go back to your high pressure, anxiety inducing nightmare."

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