Page 75 of Hot for Hostage

Even after disinfecting it, I wasn’t sure I could ever look Antonio in the eye after what we’d done in his sacred cooking area.

Not even a minute later, the door swung open again.

“That was fast.” I scrubbed harder at a stubborn spot before looking up. “I thought you’d?—”

The dishcloth dropped from my hand.

It wasnotDavian in the doorway.

The man was closer to my father’s age, though he had none of my father’s warmth.

A single dark eye—a black patch covered the other—landed on me with an iciness that chilled me all the way down to my bones. He wasn’t Davian, but the similarities in their features were unmistakable. He had the same lush dark hair as my ex-hostage—with a few streaks of grey mixed in.

The same strong jawline.

Same aura of danger radiating from him, which made my chest tighten.

There was no doubt in my mind this man was Sebastian Reed.

Every cell in my body screamed at me to run as fast as I could in the opposite direction.

But my feet were glued to the floor.

pretty little thing

. . .

Sadie

Sadie’s Guide toHostage-TakingBeing Taken HostageForming a Partnership with Your HostageEmbracing the Hostage Lifestyle, Tip #19: There may come a day when you meet your hostage’s family. My advice? …Run.

After the instinct to run failed, my first—and completely inappropriate—thought was if this man’s genetics were Davian’s future, then he had a promising one.

Sebastian Reed was an attractive man. His dark suit looked expensive, and he had the same athletic build as Davian. A lot of the same things as Davian.

Minus the villainous eye patch, of course.

Why hadn’t Davian warned me his father had an eye patch? That was something you gave someone a heads-up about, so they wouldn’t be caught staring.

My second thought was I might pee myself if this scary man walked any closer to me.

Luckily, he came to a halt a few feet inside the door as soon as he noticed me, and the eyebrow over his missing eye rose. I tried not to stare at the patch.

I failed.

“You’re not Antonio,” he said in a deep voice that raised the little hairs on my arms.

I opened and closed my mouth, unsure I should say anything. Davian hadn’t wanted me to meet his father, but he was righthere. It’d be weirder if I didn’t speak.

“Nope,” I answered, pleased when my voice came out steady despite feeling shaken to my very core. I swallowed and shook my head. “Not Antonio.”

The other brow joined its friend.

He took a step closer, then another, and the sharp echo of his loafers on the hardwood floor made my heart skip a much-needed beat. I picked the dishcloth up for something to focus on and glanced around the counter, unsure where to look.

Butnotlooking at the scary man seemed more dangerous, so I peeked up at Davian’s father again as he stopped right next to me.

The biting frost in his eye sucked all the warmth from the room, raising goose bumps along my arms.

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