Page 23 of The Cost of Corruption

“Why in hell would I do that?”

“So I could catch the train back to my convent upstate.”

“You told me you didn’t want to go back there.”

“All I said was that I didn’t want to be exiled to Rome.”

“We both knew what you meant.”

I looked back over my shoulder as I reached the third-floor landing and found her stalled a few steps down. Her fingers were gripped tight around the polished wood banister, and her golden gaze was wide and wary.

“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked, her voice trembling like it had in my office.

As if she didn’t know. As if she’d somehow forgotten how deeply she’d kissed me when we were alone. How she’d explored my body with her hands and mouth.

Those weren’t the actions of a woman who was dying to get back to a life of prayer and solitude.

“Come upstairs,” I told her. “We can talk about this in the privacy of my room.”

“Your room?” Her face paled a little as her eyes flashed toward the door at my side. “Yourbedroom?”

“Yes,” I said with a nod.

“Couldn’t we talk somewhere else?”

“Wecould,” I said. “The whole third floor is mine, and the first and second floors are open to family members. But right now, I want to be in my bedroom.”

She teased her lower lip with her teeth nervously before finally asking, “Why?”

“Because it’s five o’clock in the morning, and I’ve been working all night.”

“Oh.” Her grip on the handrail loosened at the mundane answer, and she did her best to show a sense of relief, but I caught the little lines of disappointment that bit into the skin next to her eyes. “I guess that makes sense. You’re tired.”

“Among other things,” I said, mostly to watch the fire flash in her eyes again. “But I promise not to throw you down on my bed,rip off all of your clothes, and have my wicked way with you. Not unless you beg.”

“I would never,” she swore.

Oh, really? We’d see about that.

But apparently, my word was still good enough for her to reluctantly make her way up the rest of the stairs and follow me through the door. The second it closed, I slid the lock home and turned to her.

“And now that we’re alone,” I said, lowering my voice. “It’s time for you to tell me what you really want.”

Chapter Six

CHASTITY

Despite my best intentions, I kept finding myself in locked rooms alone with Matteo D’Angelo. If I were the kind of person who put any stock in Freudian psychology, I would worry it was a subconscious desire.

Unfortunately, there was nothingsubconscious about my desire for the man. That was the problem. I was always fully aware of my feelings for him. They were always front and center in my mind. There was no hiding from them.

Especially not now.

“All I want to do is sleep for a few more hours and then make my way to the train station,” I told him. “If I leave this afternoon, I could be back at the convent before sunset.”

“If they let you back in,” Matteo said, casually peeling off his jacket and carefully draping it over the back of a chair.

“What do you meanif?” I asked, staring daggers into his back. “I’ll be taking my final vows with them in two weeks. They can’t throw me out now.”

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