Page 18 of Austen Persuaded

Rainn frowned. “But Annie—”

“OK, because I know you guys miss seeing me, I’ll read out here on the couch.” I flashed a dazzling smile, running my fingers through my hair while I turned to go fetch my books.

Pip had only just discovered he would be meeting Miss Havisham when my phone buzzed beside me on the bed. I drew in a steadying breath and looked at the text message. Brandon was on his way. I scanned the area for my bookmark, which I’d brought with me when I’d gone to read in my bedroom an hour ago. Finally, I found it and placed it lovingly within my worn-out copy of Dickens’ classic. I’d decided to readGreat Expectationsafter all, as I couldn’t handle a romance happily ever after right now, and I definitely needed fiction. I couldn’t recall every detail of the novel I’d read many years ago, but I was pretty sure Pip’s love story didn’t end well. And that was perfect.

Soon I heard voices outside my room, followed by a brief knock before he entered.

Brandon walked in, closing the door behind him quickly. I’d dimmed the lights, so it took a moment for his eyes to adjust. “Annie, hi. Oh, you … aren’t wearing the red thing.”

I steeled myself. I’d prepared for this conversation. I would play it cool if it killed me.

I kept my expression and my tone neutral. “I am not.”

He shrugged and took a few steps forward. “Eh, it’s OK. You’re in bed. You know I like that.” As he came closer, I could see even in the dimness his tongue licking the back of his teeth as his eyes glazed over. I was surprised he wasn’t salivating. And I could smell the liquor on his breath, and something else too. Probably some woman’s perfume.

He was disgusting.

“Brandon, I was hoping we could talk first.”

His brows furrowed a bit, but he nodded. “Sure, yeah, of course.” He sat on the bed, the dazed look in his eyes clearing a bit. “What’s up, babe?”

“I didn’t see you much this week.” I watched his face for a reaction and paused to see if he’d offer any excuses for not checking in on me. He simply ran his fingers through his slightly tousled hair and stared at me, waiting for me to say more. “When I last saw you, I made a pretty big confession. Do you remember?”

He glanced at his lap and scratched his head. “Ah, I … I’m not sure—”

“I said I might be falling in love with you.” I narrowed my eyes slightly as I watched him.

A look of shock or maybe panic crossed his face before he quickly pasted on his winning smile. “You did. Of course I remember. I’m such a lucky guy. It’s, uh, it’s part of the reason I came over.”

“Oh?”

“I mean, yeah. Had to show my appreciation,” he said with a grin.

“Your appreciation? That’s an interesting way to put it.” I kept my voice even and pretended to examine my nails before looking him square in the eye. “Usually when one person uses the L-word for the first time, a different kind of response is expected.”

He couldn’t hide his discomfort now, though he still tried. He quickly pasted on another smile and put his hand to his heart. “Well, of course, babe. You’re so gorgeous, it was love at first sight for me.”

I swallowed the disgust threatening to overtake me.

He reached out then to stroke my calf, while I forced myself not to immediately pull away in revulsion. “So, do you want to—”

“Not yet. I was wondering, are you in love with Viviana too?”

He sharply drew his hand back to his lap. His mouth opened and then closed, and his eyes were wary. “Hell no. I don’t even like her that much. Why?”

I bristled at this. Even though I wasn’t on speaking terms with Viviana right now, I didn’t want to hear this jerk disparaging her. “Oh, she paid me a visit the night after Ellen’s dinner party.”

Brandon stood up, his blue eyes flashing in anger. “I’ll bet she did.” He paused for a moment with a calculating sneer. “She was pretty forward with me, and she didn’t take my rejection well. Whatever she told you—”

I rose from the bed and stood in front of him, finally allowing him to see the full force of the fury in my eyes. “Howdareyou. You are not fit to say her name, you … you snake.”

His expression morphed from disbelief to brief regret and then to a sneer, transforming his face into something I didn’t recognize. Who was this person I thought I’d been falling in love with?

He must have seen the horror pass over my face at that moment, as he said mockingly, “Don’t worry, we can still have a quickie before I go.”

Ice ran through my veins as I purred, “That’s the one thing I will miss. The bedroom. You gave almost as good as you received.Almost, but not quite.” I spun on my heel before commanding him over my shoulder, “Now get out.”

There was a beat before I heard him shuffle his feet. As he opened the door, I heard his loathsome voice again. “Girls like you are a dime a dozen, Annie. You’re a pretty redhead, a hot lay, nothing more. It’ll take me five minutes to replace you.”

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