Page 57 of Secrets & Lies

And now my mind was in overdrive. Like I neededthatvisual right now while lying naked in the tub. Hearing his sexy chuckle, I wondered what he was thinking.

“I was going to say, as far as pulling out goes, that’s the plan. I’m pulling out all the stops for you. That’ll be my primary focus. However, now you’ve got me all distracted and thinking about something entirely different.”

“Well, as much as I’d love to continue this conversation, if you want me ready in an hour, I must say goodbye.” I sat up in the tub.

“Very well, goodbye for now. Remember, hair up.”

I rolled my eyes and hung up on him. The man was mental. Which more than likely made me mental too. After all, I agreed to go out with him despite all my instincts telling me to run in the opposite direction.

Tossing my phone to the side, I dunked down into the water. What the hell was I doing?

I reached for the body wash and wash cloth, realizing I needed to get a move on if I was going to do this. The last thing I wanted to be was late and to have him hanging around waiting on me.

Dr. Marcel’s message came to mind once more, and I hoped that his prediction would come true—that this would be a one-and-done situation. While I believed I could manage a single date with Aleksandr, anything beyond that seemed impossible.

I meant what I said about him earlier. He was dangerous, in more ways than one. He reminded me of how a magnet had both a north and south pole. I was both pulled to him and equally felt the need to repel him.

The wordssafeandwarmpopped into my head. And even though I was confident I could keep myself safe, it was the warm part that longed to let him pull me in.

I pulled the plug, and the water gurgled as it drained. I rinsed off with the handheld wand and then stepped out onto the bath mat. After drying off, I reached for my honeysuckle-scented lotion and smoothed it over my body, relishing the sweet aroma.

Since Aleksandr had mentioned it, my own senses were heightened to it, and I had to admit it had a delicate and sweet, floral aroma that reminded me of summer.

As I smoothed the lotion on my skin, the fragrance lingered in the air, and I shook my head at my own behavior. I may have made sure I applied the body spray to my neck just for Reaper, but I would never admit it…even to myself.

“Now look who is certifiable?” I muttered to my reflection in the bathroom mirror.

I took my time with my hair, carefully drying and curling it before using a decorative pin to secure it up as he requested. It created beautiful waves and with a final pull of a few strands that hung loose around my face, I called it a night.

Moving on to my makeup, I opened my bag and began with the winged black eyeliner. Thank god for makeup tutorials, or I would have looked like an idiot.

While I was growing up, it never occurred to me that I was missing out on a woman’s touch in my life. Or well, in this case, education in how to apply makeup so I didn’t resemble a clown.

With a steady hand, I drew the line from the inner crease of my eye and extended it outward, creating the perfect cat eye. I added a few more drawn lines, and then I applied a glittery pale-pink shadow on the lower part of my lid.

I followed that up with a pale apricot shadow and topped it off with a shimmery silver at the top of the lid, completing the first part. Now all I needed was to fill in the inner eye crease with the same silver. My mind drifted to the past.

What would Owen think of me going on a date for the first time? Would I even be if he were alive? We’d probably still be living up at the cabin. No one to date up there.

Owen hadn’t known much about raising a girl, but we managed for the most part, and what he couldn’t figure out, the internet helped with. I thought back to the first time I got my period.

I already knew what to expect, and my reassurance that he didn’t have to explain it to me was priceless. The amount of relief that flooded his face still brought a smile to my lips. I was thirteen, and he must have been preparing for it because he quietly led me over to a cabinet where he’d stocked up on enough supplies for a household of women.

Various products were stacked from top to bottom in the supply closet. The configuration resembled the store shelves. We didn’t need to replenish for years. I shook my head to clear the memories. I needed to focus on finishing up. Alek was due to arrive shortly.

I took a step back and smiled at my reflection, feeling confident and beautiful. Somewhere along the way, I managed to create a look that was both dramatic and playful. After adding a touch of highlighter to my cheeks, I opted to keep the lips neutral and added some gloss to them.

I took a deep breath and walked into my bedroom. There was no sense in avoiding it any longer. The dress lay on my bed, looking as inappropriate off the hanger as it had on.

Grumbling under my breath about the lingerie, I had to admit, it might not have been all bad. I would have probably felt much more confident if I wore that black ensemble under it, rather than the pink cotton thong I was wearing.

Too late for that now.

However, it was when I donned the dress that I was overcome with the urge to call and cancel the entire thing. I could kill him, literally. Turning to the side, I shook my head. Talk about scandalous.

The material clung to my body, emphasizing my breasts and hips. The dress itself was low cut, like the one I wore to the club, but the real issue was on either side of my ribs, where everyone would see a very generous amount of my breasts.

No way was this going down. He had to know this was a possibility; he picked out the damned thing. My regret for agreeing to go out with him tonight reared its ugly head once more.

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