Page 69 of Innocent Intentions

I don’t answer. I fly out of my chair.

I don’t even take a moment to form a plan to convince Matty to let me go home and grab my equipment. I can’t waste time.

“Where are you going?” Dotty’s startled.

“I need to talk to Matty!”

I don’t wait for a response, letting the door swing shut behind me.

I burst into Matty’s office without knocking.

At the sight of me, his brows snap together. He rushes to his feet and makes his way over.

“I have to go. I’ll call you back later.” He hangs up mid-conversation. He doesn’t even give the other person time to respond. I should feel bad. That was probably an important call. But I don’t care.

“I’m sorry.” I blurt. “I should’ve knocked.”

“You never need to knock.” His voice is steady, but his eyes scan me for signs of distress. “What’s wrong?”

He tilts my chin up, forcing eye contact. His massive hands completely engulf my face. My brain stutters.

“I need to go to my house.” I rush out. “I promise I’ll come right back.”

“No.”

There’s no hesitation. No room for argument. Because he doesn’t trust me.

He gave you your phone back. And you haven’t even tried calling for help.

Why haven’t I? Any sane person would have. Right?

You don’t want to leave.

The thought startles me. That can’t be true. It must be Stockholm Syndrome, right?

“What do you need?” Matty asks. “I can send one of my men to get it.”

A blush crawls up my neck.

I like narrating romance novels. I really enjoy it. And I’m proud of my success. But I don’t want to tell him. There’s a reason I use a pen name. If he knows, he’ll have questions. And if he listens? Oh God. I go over my last project in my head. There are way too manyspicyscenes. That cannot happen.

“I have to be the one to get it.” I try to reason.

His eyes narrow. “Why?”

“It’s… private.”

He tilts his head. “I had Dotty get you feminine hygiene products when you first arrived. If that’s what you need, she can grab more for you.”

I blink. “You… you thought of that for me?”

He nods, completely casual.

I don’t know why that makes my heart race.

A man making sure you have tampons and pads. A man paying attention. It’s attractive.

Is that weird?

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